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 South Africa and from Stockholm.
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 1967 to 1975.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Sao Paulo and Calgary.
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 1983 at the first Lewis practice in a loft in Vancouver.
I was working on the arpeggiator 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 The Kinks to the grunge kids.
I played it at the Hacienda.
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 Blancmange. All the underground hits.
All Mr. Review tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Royal Trux 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 '90s.
I hear you're buying a guitar and a 808 and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Alice Coltrane record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your marimba and bought a rhodes.
I hear that you and your band have sold your rhodes and bought a marimba.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Bill Wells,
Dave Gahan,
Bang On A Can,
Peter and Kerry,
Wasted Youth,
Pantytec,
Buzzcocks,
Rotary Connection,
Todd Terry,
Mission of Burma,
Reuben Wilson,
Louis and Bebe Barron,
Technova,
Oneida,
Andrew Ashong & Theo Parrish,
Lalann,
Rhythim Is Rhythim,
John Cale,
Inner City,
The Happenings,
Alison Limerick,
John Holt,
The Beau Brummels,
A Certain Ratio,
The Real Kids,
Lakeside,
Danielle Patucci,
The Dead C,
Johnny Clarke,
The Raincoats,
Warren Ellis,
Reagan Youth,
Teenage Jesus and the Jerks,
Maurizio,
The Pretty Things,
Patti Smith,
Slave,
Michelle Simonal,
Byron Stingily,
U.S. Maple,
KRS-One,
LL Cool J,
New Order,
Nirvana,
the Association,
Suburban Knight,
H. Thieme,
June Days,
The Smoke,
Barbara Tucker,
Q65,
Anakelly,
Zero Boys,
Section 25,
Porter Ricks,
Pere Ubu,
Big Daddy Kane,
Average White Band,
Visage,
Wire,
Dawn Penn,
Ronan, Ronan, Ronan, Ronan.
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.