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 San Marino and from Tehran.
But I was there.
I was there in 1976.
I was there at the first Wire show in Watford.
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 1975.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Lyon and Hong Kong.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Milan 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 1979 at the first Second Layer practice in a loft in South London.
I was working on the marimba 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 James Chance & The Contortions to the electroclash kids.
I played it at Trash.
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 Sly & The Family Stone. All the underground hits.
All Erykah Badu tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Siouxsie and the Banshees record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal rap hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '80s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a synthesizer and a 808 and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Sonny Sharrock record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your arpeggiator and bought a güiro.
I hear that you and your band have sold your güiro and bought an arpeggiator.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Boz Scaggs,
Agitation Free,
Drexciya,
Dr. Dre and Snoop Doggy Dog,
The Shadows of Knight,
Interpol,
Cabaret Voltaire,
Jimmy McGriff,
Brothers Johnson,
Letta Mbulu,
Juan Atkins,
The Birthday Party,
Zapp,
Strawberry Alarm Clock,
Fluxion,
Louis and Bebe Barron,
Youth Brigade,
The Residents,
Hardrive,
Patti Smith,
Model 500,
John Holt,
Tears for Fears,
Audionom,
Sister Nancy,
Harry Pussy,
Scott Walker,
Ludus,
Swell Maps,
Delta 5,
Angels of Light & Akron/Family,
June Days,
Pere Ubu,
T.S.O.L.,
Outsiders,
The Detroit Cobras,
Barclay James Harvest,
Fugazi,
Flash Fearless,
Bill Near,
KRS-One,
Tropical Tobacco,
Jerry's Kids,
Scrapy,
Monks,
Circle Jerks,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
Reagan Youth,
Peter & Gordon,
Throbbing Gristle,
Television Personalities,
Black Sheep,
the Association,
The Mojo Men,
The Divine Comedy,
DNA,
Pharoah Sanders,
Negative Approach,
Vainqueur,
Piero Umiliani,
Donald Byrd,
Intrusion, Intrusion, Intrusion, Intrusion.
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.