Fad Gadget was the pseudonym used by British musician, synthesizer pioneer,… Read Full Bio ↴Fad Gadget was the pseudonym used by British musician, synthesizer pioneer, and performance artist Frank Tovey - an influential electronic music/New Wave artist throughout his career- from 1979 until 1984.

Tovey began his musical career after studying performance art at Leeds Polytechnic, but started recording upon his move back to his native London, UK. The songs of his early career (under the pseudonym) all feature synthesizers plus, sometimes, machine sounds like that of an electric razor or an electric drill. Almost all of his songs create a dark, mystical atmosphere, with Gadget's voice hovering monotonously over then unheard of, groundbreaking and still brilliant synthesizer sound effects. The lyrics are either very earnest, discussing subjects like guilt or life and death, or convey a black, sarcastic humour.

Initially, Fad Gadget was merely a moniker for Tovey, but as time went on a band was formed (although keeping Tovey as the main focal point). His longest-serving sidekick was drummer Nick Cash. Other members were keyboardist David Simmonds, bassist Peter Balmer, guitarist & bassist David Rogers and viola player & backing vocalist Joni Sackett

Singles included Back To Nature, Ricky's Hand and Collapsing New People. Fad Gadget was the first artist signed to the then-fledgling Mute label, on which he released four full length albums, Fireside Favourites (1980), Incontinent (1981), Under The Flag (1982) and Gag (1984). After 1984's Gag, Tovey released a compilation, (The Fad Gadget Singles), and recorded five more albums under his own name, whose styles ranged from semi-industrial electronic ballads to folk-oriented protest songs. He last appeared on a European tour supporting his latest album in 1993 and then virtually disappeared for some eight years.

In 2001 Tovey (and Cash) resurfaced with a comeback appearance and subsequently supported Depeche Mode on the Exciter tour later that year, again under his pseudonym Fad Gadget and backed by members of Temple X, whose album he had been producing. (Depeche Mode cite Tovey/Gadget as an icon and a paragon, and his influences can be heard in their music.) Tovey died of a heart attack on 3 April, 2002, aged 45, having suffered heart problems throughout his life.

Insecticide
Fad Gadget Lyrics

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Creep up the wall
Then across the ceiling
I spin round the bulb
And land on a sandwich

I smash my face on the windowpane
I'm smashing my face on the windowpane
I'm smashing my face against the windowpane

I crawl in your ear
While you were sleeping
I've been here a year now
And I'm getting restless

I smash my face on the windowpane
I'm smashing my face on the windowpane
I'm smashing my face against the windowpane

The wife understands now
She's getting quite used to me
Lets me out in the day time
And takes me in every night

I smash my face on the windowpane
I'm smashing my face on the windowpane
I'm smashing my face against the windowpane
I'm smashing my face on the windowpane

I fall to the floor and I do it again

I smash my face on the windowpane
I'm smashing my face on the windowpane

I'm smashing my face against the windowpane
I'm smashing my face on the windowpane

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Fad Gadget’s song “Insecticide” depict the actions and urgent desires of a bug. In the first verse, the insect crawls up the wall and onto the ceiling. The use of the word “spin” and the fact that the insect lands on a sandwich implies that it is a fly. The fly then smashes its face on the windowpane repeatedly, which could be interpreted as either a failed escape attempt or an attempt at communication. In the second verse, the fly crawls into the person’s ear while they sleep, indicating that the fly has been in the room for an extended period of time. The line “I’m getting restless” emphasizes the fly’s increasing frustration and desperation while being trapped in the space.

The lyrics also allude to a relationship between the fly and the wife of the person whose house they are in. The wife has come to understand and accept the fly’s presence, even letting it out during the day and bringing it in at night. This interaction adds a layer of complexity to the song, as it shows how something as small and insignificant as a fly can cause disruption and impact the lives of those around it. The repeated lines “I’m smashing my face on the windowpane” emphasize the persistence of the fly’s desires and its inability to escape.

Line by Line Meaning

Creep up the wall
Slowly climb up the wall

Then across the ceiling
Move horizontally from wall to wall on the ceiling

I spin round the bulb
Rotate around the lightbulb

And land on a sandwich
Come to rest on a sandwich

I smash my face on the windowpane
Repeatedly hit my face against the glass of the window

I'm smashing my face on the windowpane
Continuing to hit my face against the window

I'm smashing my face against the windowpane
Persistently hitting my face on the glass

I crawl in your ear
Move into your ear canal

While you were sleeping
During the time when you were asleep

I've been here a year now
I've been living in your ear for a year

And I'm getting restless
I'm becoming impatient and wanting to move on