On this day 25 ago, Frank Tovey returned on stage under his most famous moniker FAD GADGET. This for the first time again since he dropped this project and its name in 1985 and began using his real name Frank Tovey.

Frank Tovey played his first Fad Gadget comeback show at the Elecktrofest 2001 on Sunday, April 15th at the Mean Fiddler venue in London with Austrians Temple X as the backing musicians.

The presence of Depeche Mode's Andy Fletcher and Mute boss Daniel Miller in the crowd was confirmation of the significance of Fad Gadget's return to public life.

Later Frank Tovey's Fad Gadget returned to headline dates after opening for Depeche Mode in 2001.

Rumors of a new album were circulating but his artistic renaissance was cruelly curtailed by his death from heart failure one year later, on April 3rd, 2002.

Some unique pictures of this show can be viewed here!

A concert review can be read here!

Elecktrofest 2001 Sunday, April 15th - Mean Fiddler, London, England

Set-List Fad Gadget

State Of The Nation
Ricky's Hand
Collapsing New People
Luxery
Fireside Favorite
Love Parasite
Lady Shave
Coitus Interruptus

Insecticide
Back To nature

Festival Line-up:

Fad Gadget
Icon of Coil
In Strict Confidence
Mechanical Cabaret
Void Contrukt
Adfinem

On this day, 41 years ago, Marianne Joan Elliott-Said, better know as Poly Styrene, passed away.

Poly left her home at the age of 16 and became interested in punk music after attending a concert by The Sex Pistols in the mid 70s. Shortly after she placed an advertisement in a local newspaper saying she was looking for people to start her own punk band. Ultimately this band became the legendary X - Ray Spex, featuring the 19 year old Poly as the flamboyant figurehead. She stood out for her striking appearance. She wore clashing colours and braces to emphasize she did not want to be seen as a sex object.

The band had an instant underground hit with their debut 7” 'Oh Bondage! (30 September 1977). In 1978 two more successful singles followed ,’The Day The World Turned Day-glo' and 'Identity'.

In 1978 Poly Styrene started to suffer from hallucinations that prevented her from focusing on the band and music. She was hospitalized where she was misdiagnosed as schizophrenic. It was not until 1991 that she was diagnosed correctly with bipolar behavioral disorder.

After X - Ray Spex broke up in 1980, Poly Styrene released her solo album 'Translucence'. The loud punk sound and her characteristic shrill voice gave way to calmer jazzy music and a more subdued singing style.

Even when solo album became a minor success, Poly Styrene withdrew from the music world soon after. In 1983 she joined the Hare Krishna movement, which she was actively involved with until 1988.

For many years she lived in anonymity but suddenly, in 2004 she made a comeback with the album 'Flower Airplane'. Six years later another new album, ‘Generation Indigo' was released (March 28, 2011). It would become her final album …

In February 2011, Poly Styrene was diagnosed with advanced breast cancer, with metastases to the spine and lungs. She died on Easter Monday, 25 April 2011 at her home in Sussex at the age of 53.

DISCOGS

On this day, 39 years ago, MUTE records released their first Nitzer Ebb product. Although it was initially released by Nitzer Ebb themselves as their official 3rd single (NEP3), through their own label Power Of Voice and featuring 'Get Clean' as b-side in May 1986. 'Let Your Body Learn' was re-released by Mute Records (EU) and Geffen Records (US) in April 1987 with different song versions, track-lists and variating artwork, preceding their cult album to be, That Total Age (1987) on Mute Records (1987).

Let Your Body Learn (7” - MUTE58)

A.. Let Your Body Learn (DM Hansa Mix) 2:48
B. Let Your Body Learn (Instrumental) 3:08

Let Your Body Learn (12” - 12MUTE58)

A.. Let Your Body Learn 6:27
B1.. Let Your Body Learn (Instrumental) 3:08
B2. Let Your Body Learn (7" Edit) 2:50

Let Your Body Learn (Lyrics)

Fast beat the feet
Fast fall the hands
Fast beat the feet
Fast fall the hands

Melt in the music
The music of drums
Melt in the music
The music of drums

Choose the fast beat
Choose the hard line
Choose the fast beat
Choose the hard line

Try to show us one better
Not sick to the heart
Not calling with flesh
Suffer little children
Suffer little children
Suffer little children
Written in pain

Boys at one
Girls at peace
Boys at one
Girls at peace
Boys at one
Girls at peace
Boys at one
Girls at peace

Fast beat the feet
Fast fall the hands
Fast beat the feet
Fast fall the hands

Hold onto rhythm
The music of drums
Hold onto rhythm
The music of drums

The pulse is alive
Making me sane

Let your body learn
Let your body build
Let your body learn
Let your body build

Suffer little children
Suffer little children
Suffer little children
The pulse is alive

Fast beat the feet
Fast fall the hands

Boys at one
Girls at peace
Boys at one
Girls at peace
Boys at one
Girls at peace
Boys at one
Girls at peace

Freedom from fear
Giving release
Freedom from fear
Giving release
Giving release
Giving your heart

Fast beating feet
Fast falling hands
Fast beating feet
Fast falling hands
Fast beat the feet
Fast fall the hands

Choose
Fast beat the feet (learn)

Choose
Fast beat the feet (learn)

Feel

Choose

Let your body learn
Let your body build
Let your body learn
Let your body build

Choose

Learn

Build

Choose

Learn

Build

Choose

Learn

Build

Choose

DISCOGS

Today 20 years ago, Nine Inch Nails released ‘Every Day Is Exactly the Same’ as their third single taken from the album With Teeth. It became NIN 21st official release thus baring the Halo 21 catalogue number.

The radio single reached #1 on the Billboard Modern Rock singles chart in the Modern Rock Tracks category and #12 in the Mainstream Rock Tracks category. The song also reached number one on the Canadian Singles Chart, and received a nomination for Best Hard Rock Performance at the 49th annual Grammy Awards. Though a planned music video was scrapped in the post-production stage, "Every Day Is Exactly the Same" still topped Billboard's 2006 year-end Hot Dance Singles Sales chart, it has so far spent 94 weeks on the chart.

Every Day is Exactly the Same (US CD EP tracklist)

1 "Every Day Is Exactly the Same" – 4:57

2 "The Hand That Feeds" (DFA Mix) – 9:03

3 "The Hand That Feeds" (Photek Straight Mix) – 7:47

4 "Only" (El-P Mix) – 4:22

5 "Only" (Richard X Mix) – 7:25

6 "Every Day Is Exactly the Same" (Sam Fog vs. Carlos D Mix) – 5:03

Every Day is Exactly the Same (Lyrics)

I believe I can see the future

'Cause I repeat the same routine

I think I used to have a purpose

But then again, that might have been a dream

I think I used to have a voice

Now I never make a sound

I just do what I've been told

I really don't want them to come around, oh no

Every day is exactly the same

Every day is exactly the same

There is no love here and there is no pain

Every day is exactly the same

I can feel their eyes are watching

In case I lose myself again

Sometimes I think I'm happy here

(Sometimes)

Sometimes, yet I still pretend

I can't remember how this got started

Oh, but I can tell you exactly how it will end

Every day is exactly the same

Every day is exactly the same

There is no love here and there is no pain

Every day is exactly the same

I'll write it on a little piece of paper

I'm hoping, someday, you might find

Well I'll hide it behind something

They won't look behind

I am still inside her

A little bit comes bleeding through

I wish this could've been any other way

But I just don't know, I don't know what else I can do

Every day is exactly the same

Every day is exactly the same

There is no love here and there is no pain

Every day is exactly the same

Every day is exactly the same

Every day is exactly the same

There is no love here and there is no pain

Every day is exactly the same (every day is the same)

DISCOGS

Today it’s been already 24 years since Frank Tovey, also known as Fad Gadget, passed away at the age of 45 (°8 September 1956 – † 3 April 2002). He was a pioneer of both (electronic) New-wave and Industrial music. As no other, and we even dare to say upon today, he succeeded in fusing together darkish electro-pop with industrial and noisy experiments.

His sarcastic and darkly humorous view on life reflected his lyrics that were mostly filled with biting social commentary towards subjects such as machinery, industrialization, consumerism, human sexuality, mass media, religion, domestic violence and dehumanization.

In 1978 Frank Tovey sent a demo tape of Back to Nature to Daniel Miller, who had just released his own, and thus first Mute label single, as The Normal.

Tovey signed as Fad Gadget to Daniel Miller's Mute Records made him the first artist to sign to Mute and ”Back to Nature" the second release on Mute Records. The single was recorded on a 8-track recorder and released in 1979. After this successful single release, the follow-up single Ricky’s Hand record was recorded and released. Tovey also began recording a full album, his iconic debut album Fireside Favorites which was released by Mute in November 1980.

In 1981 Tovey released another single “Make Room", featuring the "Lady Shave" on the b-side, the latter went on to become one of his most known and played tracks.

For Tovey the ideas and concepts behind his live performances were just as important as his music. His live appearances quickly became known for his confrontational stage antics.

In total Frank Tovey recorded four albums under the moniker Fad Gadget, four as Frank Tovey and two as Frank Tovey & The Pyros.

After the release and tour from Frank Tovey & The Pyros album Worried Men In Second-Hand Suits (1992) he withdrew from the music scene for almost a decade.

In 2001 he started performing again as Fad Gadget supporting label mates Depeche Mode on their world tour. Fad Gadet was invited by Depeche Mode themselves as they once supported Fad Gadget on tour in 1980.

On April 3rd 2002, only a few days after he had returned home from a Fad Gadget come-back tour through Europe, Frank Tovey died due to a heart failure. Apparently he was aware of the risks of a heart failure that were already diagnosed when he was a chid. This could explain why he called one of the track on his Fireside Favorite debut album the Arch Of The Aorta.

Album Discography

As Fad Gadget

• Fireside Favourites (1980)
• Incontinent (1981)
• Under the Flag (1982)
• Gag (1984)
• The Best of Fad Gadget (2001)

As Frank Tovey

• Easy Listening for the Hard of Hearing (1984) (with Boyd Rice)
• Snakes and Ladders (1986)
• The Fad Gadget Singles (1986)
• Civilian (1988)
• Tyranny & the Hired Hand (1989)
• Grand Union (1991)
• Worried Men in Second Hand Suits (1992)
• Fad Gadget by Frank Tovey (2006)

DISCOGS FAD GADGET

DISCOGS FRANK TOVEY