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 Haiti and from Woodstock.
But I was there.
I was there in 1970.
I was there at the first Onyeabor show in Enugu.
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 1968 to 1974.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Mexico City and Lille.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Tokyo 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 marimba 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 James White and The Blacks to the jazz 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 Oblivians. All the underground hits.
All Big Daddy Kane tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every X-102 record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal funk hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '80s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a harpsichord and a theremin and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Lebanon Hanover record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought a marimba.
I hear that you and your band have sold your marimba and bought a synthesizer.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Q and Not U,
World's Most,
The Motions,
The Evens,
Rotary Connection,
Average White Band,
The Seeds,
Section 25,
A Certain Ratio,
Dawn Penn,
PIL,
Tommy Roe,
Anthony Braxton,
Icehouse,
The Fortunes,
Isaac Hayes,
U.S. Maple,
The Fugs,
Half Japanese,
The Peanut Butter Conspiracy,
Roxy Music,
Marc Romboy vs. Booka Shade,
Tears for Fears,
the Association,
The Trojans,
B.T. Express,
Minutemen,
the Swans,
The Mighty Diamonds,
Jandek,
Chrome,
Eric Copeland,
Whodini,
Quadrant,
Michelle Simonal,
Funky Four + One,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
The Music Machine,
Main Source,
The Misunderstood,
Beasts of Bourbon,
Au Pairs,
The Flesh Eaters,
Red Lorry Yellow Lorry,
The Electric Prunes,
Depeche Mode,
Delon & Dalcan,
Grandmaster Flash,
Country Teasers,
Pole,
Boz Scaggs,
Selector Dub Narcotic,
The Count Five,
Youth Brigade,
L. Decosne,
Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth,
Stockholm Monsters,
The Stooges,
Lebanon Hanover,
A Flock of Seagulls,
Gang Green,
MDC,
Peter & Gordon, Peter & Gordon, Peter & Gordon, Peter & Gordon.
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.