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 Estonia and from Calgary.
But I was there.
I was there in 1975.
I was there at the first Ubu show in Cleveland.
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 1967 to 1978.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Seoul and Sao Paulo.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Accra 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 1977 at the first Mistral practice in a loft in Amsterdam.
I was working on the güiro sounds with much patience.
I was there when Holger Czukay 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 Gastr Del Sol to the rap kids.
I played it at the Astoria.
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 Niagra. All the underground hits.
All Pylon tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Tres Demented record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal dance hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '50s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a clarinet and a spring reverb and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a The Monochrome Set record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your harpsichord and bought a theremin.
I hear that you and your band have sold your theremin and bought a harpsichord.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Surgeon,
Masta Ace, Craig G, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane,
Grey Daturas,
The Dave Clark Five,
Rhythm & Sound,
Second Layer,
Adolescents,
Bad Manners,
Icehouse,
Jeff Mills,
Can,
Marcia Griffiths,
Wighnomy Brothers & Robag Wruhme,
Tomorrow,
Ash Ra Tempel,
Todd Rundgren,
Todd Terry,
The Velvet Underground,
Inner City,
Alphaville,
Accadde A,
Be Bop Deluxe,
Black Moon,
Easy Going,
Negative Approach,
E-Dancer,
Avey Tare's Slasher Flicks,
Wolf Eyes,
the Germs,
Pharaoh Sanders and the Fire Engines,
This Heat,
Tom Boy,
Das Ding,
June of 44,
Barrington Levy,
Fluxion,
The Star Department,
Aaron Thompson,
Sister Nancy,
The Peanut Butter Conspiracy,
Soul II Soul,
Donny Hathaway,
Livin' Joy,
Charles Mingus,
Grauzone,
James White and The Blacks,
Aural Exciters,
Wings,
Black Pus,
The Red Krayola,
Larry & the Blue Notes,
In Retrospect,
Eve St. Jones,
Stetsasonic,
The Neon Judgement,
Sex Pistols,
Reuben Wilson,
Interpol,
Scrapy,
Mantronix, Mantronix, Mantronix, Mantronix.
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.