Jacob Torres October 3, 2012 Rhetorical Criticism Ideological Analysis

The Kids Are Coming Up From Behind

Introduction The popularity of LCD Soundsystems James Murphy is counterintuitive, to say the least. James Murphy, the principle songwriter and performer of LCD Soundsystem was 31 when he received industry attention. A fact that did not go unnoticed by Murphy, stating during a Pitchfork interview, theres so many things wrong with us as a band. I'm too old and most of the time I dont really sing. In an era in which Disney, Universal Music, and Geffen are searching for the next youngest greatest thing, Murphys presence and success directly contradicts the hegemonic appearance of what a musician looks like. However it should be noted that Murphys career lasted just nine years, explaining he never wanted to be a 40 year old jumping around on stage. Largely seen as his catapult to fame, Losing My Edge was his first released single under his moniker LCD Soundsystem. The song, an 8-minute epoch maker that humorously and satirically poked at those involved with the current music industry, served to cajole his own ego and validate his relevance as he ages, presumably off the music scene. The song was a success, and what was intended to be a musical suicide note garnered enough attention to give Murphy a record deal and made him a darling for critics, tired of hearing songs for teenagers by teenagers. It remains to be seen whether or not Murphy has broken down an ageist barrier that existed in the music world, however it should be noted the wall is actually acknowledged now, perhaps helping future musicians. Losing My Edge functions as a means for James Murphy to comically retain his dignity in a scene populated primarily by the young, but more so it begs the

Torres 2 question, how does James Murphys critique of the ever-evolving music industry function as a means to increase awareness of the ageism that exists in the music industry? Context Closer inspection of the context in which this artifact was created is necessary to reap further meaning from said artifact. Losing My Edge was released in the summer of 2002, in the wake of resurgent popularity of punk music. Bands, like The Strokes, The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and Interpol, arguably spearheaded a musical movement repopularizing the posturing and preening of heyday rock & roll. Columnist for New York Magazine, Andy Battaglia, noted that this time was considered to be a New York Renaissance. In the wake of the 9/11 attacks, the countrys eye landed upon New York, and the music industry realized this. They were able to capitalize on the sound of downtown, repackaging and reissuing the nostalgia of the musical zeitgeist that had occurred there thirty years ago. The industry was quick to draw connections between these bands and those that thirty years prior played CBGB, or who were members of the Zulu Nation, or who would graffiti subway trains between breakdancing sets. However, there was one problem with this connection. The New York that they were trying to call back to, no longer existed. Streets were safer, cops were nicer, crime wasnt as organized. Their nostalgic angst was unlived, borrowed from Woody Allens Manhattan and video clips of the 77 blackout. Murphy, in his early thirties, saw what the kids were doing. He acknowledged that the skinny tie wearing, leather pant clad rock was simply falling upon borrowed old traditions. He sought to organically merge New Yorks famous punk and disco scenes in a palpable, earnest, and eager manner. He was not professionally involved in the industry

Torres 3 at this time, however in a 2012 interview with The Atlantic, he describes having his 20s swallowed by being part of failed bands. During this time he owned a record store. Here his collection of New Yorks finest rock, disco, punk, and soul merged to form a sound his own. When the young bands of the early 2000s became prominent he was left with very few places that catered to his eclectic tastes, and thus he began throwing parties and spinning his own large vinyl collection. He became locally famous, as the guy who uses vinyl, or the cool rock disco guy. He became a tastemaker; looked at as cool. This was a turning point for Murphy. In a 2003 interview with British literary journal, Five Dials, Murphy describes the process that led to Losing My Edge. That one minute that he was DJing parties, playing his record collection, was the first time he was considered anything resembling cool. His minute ended shortly after that, when during attendance at a local punk show, some Kid was playing his records. Some Kid, was receiving acclaim for the playing his specific brand of rock. This upset Murphy, but more so it embarrassed him. I was afraid that this newfound coolness was going to go away and thats where losing my edge comes from. He describes being embarrassed by feeling a desire to latch on to such an asinine subject. Losing My Edge then became a wider metaphor, about people who grip onto other peoples creations like they are their own, despite taking no part in its creation. Murphy claims not to have had the song prewritten beforehand. In true punk fashion, the lyrics were shouted out in a stream of conscious sense, recorded on a 12track, and then released in small quantities on a 12 vinyl. This limited the reach his message had, however this may have served a greater function. Murphy, likely did not aim to reach a mainstream audience, and in releasing on vinyl he could insure that only

Torres 4 collectors would hear and broadcast his message. His message is delivered in a list format, and is filled with references that other music collectors would recognize. For example, in his second stanza he delivers a line where he claims to have been at the first Can show in Cologne [in 1968]. Music insiders, familiar with the West German experimental krautrock band, would have seen this line as a great joke, however it likely would go over the head of the mainstream listener, and more specifically, younger generations of performers. This is likely Murphys intended purpose, as he aims to assert his lived experience, and musical knowledge to prove his point that age could be of some benefit in the music industry. Description of Method of Ideological Criticism Murphys LCD Soundsystem aims to present an ideology of a contrived music business that cultivates their young, arguably inexperienced, talent for the purpose of enhancing profit. His song can be separated into three separate sections, in which his arguments keep within a theme, narrating his point in three different ways. The first, introduces his character as someone who was once a part of the industry. He gives a list of his credentials, creating an appeal to authority fallacy, stating the many milestones of music he has seen, but continually reiterates that there is a younger generation coming up from behind him. He hears their footsteps and realizes he is being forced to step down from prominence, but holds on to the glory days with his chant of I was there. Murphy attempts to maintain his standing through ad hominem arguments, meant to refute the credentials of the young through a list of attacks, designed as backhanded compliments and tongue-in-cheek observations. This can be seen in his taunt towards art-school Brooklynites in little jackets and borrowed nostalgia for the unremembered eighties. Or

Torres 5 in the way he describes losing his edge to Internet seekers who can tell me every member of every good group from 1962 to 1978. His voice drips with disdain as he describes losing his edge to better-looking people with better ideas and more talent. He sets up the next portion by introducing the youth, through gritted teeth, as actually really, really nice. The second portion illustrates meeting and engaging in a conversation with the younger generation; the footsteps have finally caught up with him. He uses pejorative language to beat down further his opponent and their dominant ideology.
I heard you have a compilation of every good song ever done by anybody. Every great song by the Beach Boys. All the underground hits. All the Modern Lovers tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of Every Niagra record on German import. I heard that you have a white label of every seminal Detroit Techno hit - 1985, '86, '87. I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '60s cut and another box set from the '70s.

Murphys sarcasm is laid on incredibly thick throughout this portion, while his tone transforms from slightly perturbed to cynical anger. At this point he enters the third portion of the song, a frenzied state of panic. Losing My Edge concludes by listing important and perhaps less known artists, used in the music community an excuse for reverence or as a means to acknowledge musical relevance. The last section, which is delivered by Murphy with shrieked urgency, is largely a red herring appeal. He appears to realize that despite being there for pivotal moments in music history, youth has always and will always trump experience. Though the tone is far from defeatist, Murphy does seem to be putting up a self-aware losing fight. His arguments, though highly comedic and poignant, dont seem to be enough to challenge the dominant ideology that youth is superior in the music industry. Analysis of Ideology

Torres 6 This ideology has two binary opposite positions, illustrated as such: Old Young Indignation & Resentment Ignorance & Apathy Life Experience Borrowed Nostalgia Out of Touch The In Crowd Passing the Torch Knowing Better Out to Pasture In Their Prime These binary opposites further illustrate the dominant ideology that the music industry perpetuates as a means to profit through the use young talent. Murphys artifact intends to increases awareness in the disparity of age found in the music industry through the use of imaginative hyperbole and outlandish insult. Although his arguments are effective as satirical attention getters, the fallacies that underline his arguments reduce the actuality of accepting his proposed views. That being said, his intended audience would understand his criticism, his jokes, and still would accept his view to a minor extent. Conclusion Murphys artifact expresses his response to aging in an industry that keeps getting younger. His song is filled with pathos, portraying a man fed up with a system that puts you out to pasture in favor of the next best thing, despite what he believes to be plethora of knowledge, age, and experience. Murphy speaks to his audience through a vinyl record; a medium that ensured his message would be understood and approved of. The purpose of this article is to shed light on an issue of ageism that exists throughout the music industry. Murphy uses touchstones elements of satire to prove his point and create interest amongst peers. His age allows him the opportunity to step back, reach mature decisions, and make commentary on the world surrounding him, in ways in which younger artists lack experience enough to achieve.

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Citations
Battaglia, A. "New York Magazine." NYMag.com. N.p., 18 Mar. 2007. Web. 01 Oct. 2012. <http://nymag.com/arts/popmusic/profiles/29425/index2.html>.

Fassler, J. "Why, Exactly, Did LCD Soundsystem Quit?" The Atlantic. N.p., 18 July 2012. Web. 01 Oct. 2012. <http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2012/07/why-exactly-did-lcdsoundsystem-quit/260007/>. "'I Speak as a Lifetime Failure'" Culture Reviews. The Gaurdian, 29 Oct. 2004. Web. 2 Oct. 2012. <http://arts.guardian.co.uk/fridayreview/story/0,,1337870,00.html>.

Murphy, James. "A Single Song: Losing My Edge." Five Dials Quarterly no.13 (2010): pg 9. Print. "You Were There: The Complete LCD Soundsystem." An Analysis of LCD Soundsystem. Pitchfork, 28 Mar. 2011. Web. 02 Oct. 2012. <http://pitchfork.com/features/articles/7947-you-were-there-the-complete-lcdsoundsystem/>.

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Losing My Edge
LCD Soundsystem
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 France and from London. But I was there. I was there in 1968. I was there at the first Can show in Cologne. 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 1962 to 1978. I'm losing my edge. To all the kids in Tokyo and Berlin. I'm losing my edge to the art-school Brooklynites in little jackets and borrowed nostalgia for the unremembered eighties. But I'm losing my edge. I'm losing my edge, but I was there. I was there. But I was there. 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 1974 at the first Suicide practices in a loft in New York City. I was working on the organ 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 Daft Punk to the rock kids. I played it at CBGB's. Everybody thought I was crazy. We all know. I was there. I was there. I've never been wrong. I used to work in the record store. I had everything before anyone.

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I was there in the Paradise Garage DJ booth with Larry Levan. I was there in Jamaica during the great sound clashes. I woke up naked on the beach in Ibiza in 1988. 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 the Beach Boys. All the underground hits. All the Modern Lovers tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of Every Niagra record on German import. I heard that you have a white label of every seminal Detroit Techno hit - 1985, '86, '87. I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '60s cut and Another box set from the '70s. I hear you're buying a synthesizer and an arpeggiator and are throwing your computer out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Yaz record. I hear that you and your band have sold your guitars and bought turntables. I hear that you and your band have sold your turntables and bought guitars. I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know. But have you seen my records? This Heat, Pere Ubu, Outsiders, Nation of Ulysses, Mars, The Trojans, The Black Dice, Todd Terry, the Germs, Section 25, Althea and Donna, Sexual harassment, a-ha, Pere Ubu, Dorothy Ashby, PIL, the Fania AllStars, the Bar-Kays, the Human League, the Normal, Lou Reed, Scott Walker, Monks, Niagra, Joy Division, Lower 48, the Association, Sun Ra, Scientists, Royal Trux, 10cc, Eric B. and Rakim, Index, Basic Channel, Soulsonic Force ("just hit me"!), Juan Atkins, David Axelrod, Electric Prunes, Gil! Scott! Heron!, the Slits, Faust, Mantronix, Pharaoh Sanders and the Fire Engines, the Swans, the Soft Cell, the Sonics, the Sonics, the Sonics, the Sonics. You don't know what you really want. (x15)