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 Bahrain and from Portland.
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 1965 to 1971.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Paris and Lagos.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Jakarta 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 1975 at the first Ubu practice in a loft in Cleveland.
I was working on the 808 sounds with much patience.
I was there when Captain Beefheart 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 EPMD to the techno 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 Super Lover Cee & Casanova Rud. All the underground hits.
All Selector Dub Narcotic tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Shuggie Otis record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal electroclash 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 linndrum and a theremin and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a The Offenders record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought an oboe.
I hear that you and your band have sold your oboe and bought a synthesizer.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The Cramps,
Terror Squad Feat. Camron,
Soft Machine,
The Doobie Brothers,
Matthew Bourne,
The Zeros,
Interpol,
Skarface,
Judy Mowatt,
Nas,
Angry Samoans,
Suicide,
Crash Course in Science,
Lafayette Afro Rock Band,
Hardrive,
The Selecter,
Byron Stingily,
The Moleskins,
Rakim,
Chrome,
Stiv Bators,
Andrew Hill,
Lightning Bolt,
Moebius,
Infiniti,
The Residents,
The Happenings,
Maurizio,
The Black Dice,
the Germs,
Guru Guru,
Darondo,
The Peanut Butter Conspiracy,
Marc Romboy vs. Booka Shade,
Spoonie Gee,
Josef K,
T. Rex,
Reagan Youth,
Motorama,
Desert Stars,
Porter Ricks,
Joy Division,
Marvin Gaye,
Scrapy,
The Detroit Cobras,
Archie Shepp,
The Real Kids,
Howard Jones,
Von Mondo,
Amon Düül,
The Standells,
The Toasters,
Main Source,
Terrestrial Tones,
Teenage Jesus and the Jerks,
Bad Manners,
Andrew Ashong & Theo Parrish,
Roy Ayers Ubiquity,
The Flesh Eaters, The Flesh Eaters, The Flesh Eaters, The Flesh Eaters.
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.