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 Cyprus and from Manila.
But I was there.
I was there in 1976.
I was there at the first Feelies show in Haledon.
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 1970.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Johannesburg and Lyon.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Portland 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 1971 at the first Selda practice in a loft in Istanbul.
I was working on the spring reverb sounds with much patience.
I was there when Tom Verlaine 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 Andrew Ashong & Theo Parrish to the rap kids.
I played it at the Spitz.
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 a-ha. All the underground hits.
All Ultramagnetic MC's tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Reuben Wilson 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 '70s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a marimba and a theremin and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Basic Channel record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your snare and bought an arpeggiator.
I hear that you and your band have sold your arpeggiator and bought a snare.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Vladislav Delay,
Stereo Dub,
Tropical Tobacco,
Boredoms,
Gang Green,
Pierre Henry,
Sandy B,
Dawn Penn,
Charles Mingus,
Altered Images,
Nik Kershaw,
Barclay James Harvest,
Pagans,
The Sonics,
Unwound,
Graham Central Station,
Spandau Ballet,
Tim Buckley,
Wighnomy Brothers & Robag Wruhme,
Harpers Bizarre,
Avey Tare,
the Normal,
Kevin Saunderson,
Gerry Rafferty,
Gabor Szabo,
Nick Fraelich,
UT,
Cymande,
June Days,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
The Pop Group,
Gang Gang Dance,
Jawbox,
John Foxx,
Sugar Minott,
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap,
Country Joe & The Fish,
Slick Rick,
Royal Trux,
Cabaret Voltaire,
D'Angelo,
Sister Nancy,
Panda Bear,
John Holt,
Visage,
James Chance & The Contortions,
Y Pants,
Michelle Simonal,
Little Man,
Man Parrish,
Marc Romboy vs. Booka Shade,
Idris Muhammad,
Chrome,
PIL,
Yazoo,
Letta Mbulu,
Sonny Sharrock,
Mantronix,
Easy Going,
Reuben Wilson,
Siglo XX,
Crispian St. Peters,
Livin' Joy,
Aswad, Aswad, Aswad, Aswad.
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.