Infinitely Losing My Edge
Yeah, I'm losing my edge.
I'm losing my edge.
The kids are coming up from behind.
I'm losing my edge.
I'm losing my edge to the kids from Mongolia and from Hong Kong.
But I was there.
I was there in 1971.
I was there at the first Selda show in Istanbul.
I'm losing my edge.
I'm losing my edge to the kids whose footsteps I hear when they get on the decks.
I'm losing my edge to the internet seekers who can tell me every member of every good group from 1969 to 1973.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Toronto and Madrid.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Taipei kids in little jackets and borrowed nostalgia for the unremembered nineties.
I'm losing my edge.
I'm losing my edge.
I can hear the footsteps every night on the decks.
But I was there.
I was there in 1983 at the first Art of Noise practice in a loft in London.
I was working on the spring reverb sounds with much patience.
I was there when David Bowie started up his first band.
I told him, "Don't do it that way. You'll never make a dime."
I was there.
I was the first guy playing AZ to the grime kids.
I played it at the 40 Watt.
Everybody thought I was crazy.
We all know.
I was there.
I was there.
I've never been wrong.
But I'm losing my edge to better-looking people with better ideas and more talent.
And they're actually really, really nice.
I'm losing my edge.
I heard you have a compilation of every good song ever done by anybody.
Every great song by Sparks. All the underground hits.
All Art Ensemble Of Chicago tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every The Monks record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal disco hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '80s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a harpsichord and a spring reverb and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a This Heat record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your marimba and bought a rhodes.
I hear that you and your band have sold your rhodes and bought a marimba.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Angels of Light & Akron/Family,
The Birthday Party,
Parry Music,
Los Fastidios,
Richard Hell and the Voidoids,
Supertramp,
Joey Negro,
Graham Central Station,
X-Ray Spex,
The Saints,
Traffic Nightmare,
Circle Jerks,
Lower 48,
Babytalk,
Eddi Front,
The Star Department,
One Last Wish,
Quando Quango,
Johnny Osbourne,
Matthew Bourne,
Bronski Beat,
Sixth Finger,
Wings,
Davy DMX,
Country Teasers,
Leonard Cohen,
EPMD,
Underground Resistance,
The Gap Band,
The Move,
48th St. Collective,
Isaac Hayes,
Cal Tjader,
Drexciya,
The Cure,
Livin' Joy,
Rufus Thomas,
Goldenarms,
Zero Boys,
Banda Bassotti,
Funky Four + One,
Fluxion,
Sun Ra,
John Cale,
Absolute Body Control,
Peter and Kerry,
Gong,
Gil Scott-Heron and Jamie xx,
The Happenings,
Lou Reed & John Cale,
the Soft Cell,
The Durutti Column,
Be Bop Deluxe,
Letta Mbulu,
The Residents,
Juan Atkins,
Japan,
Dawn Penn,
Wighnomy Brothers & Robag Wruhme,
James Chance & The Contortions,
The Flesh Eaters,
Pierre Henry,
Sound Behaviour,
Bill Wells, Bill Wells, Bill Wells, Bill Wells.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.