Dave Ball, a key member of the pioneering 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the duo achieved a global success with their version of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a seminal work of synth-pop.
He later founded the innovative techno group The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully in his rest at his residence in London on October 22, only a short time after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.
Recent Health Challenges
During that show, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a spate of health issues.
"I managed to damage myself significantly," he stated in 2023. "I broke spinal bones in my back and fractured about five ribs and broke my arm."
After contracting pneumonia and developing sepsis, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in the hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "high spirits mentally" over the summer, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is set for release next year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we literally completed only a short time ago," said the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was all set to be such an positive year for him, and I find comfort from the knowledge that he listened to the completed album and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Tributes
Almond described his collaborator as "an exceptionally talented creative mastermind", stating: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our legacy.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense aspect of my life and for the songs you created with me. I couldn't be where I am without you."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".
"Being in a duo with someone is different from being in a group, the bond is incredibly close," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many extraordinary, extraordinary, life-affirming moments as a team. Many thanks, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in the late 50s, Ball was given up for adoption when he was a year and a half of age.
He grew up in Blackpool with adoptive parents Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his given name from his birth name to David, together with his sibling Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both studying fine arts. Inspired by a shared love of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and quickly recorded an extended play.
Creative Collaboration
The pair were an distinctive combination: Ball was the quiet technician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all glitter and makeup; but they achieved a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had developed a fascination with synthesizers after watching the band Kraftwerk appear on a television science show Tomorrow's World, and started to combine dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second biggest-selling single of 1981, shifting 21 million units globally. Together with successful tracks by Gary Numan, Human League and electronic acts, it contributed to cleared the path for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The track was also included on their full-length debut, their initial LP, which produced two further top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at the second position in the following year.
Professional Journey
Success had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my first home, having financial security and travelling, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball recently shared with a publication.
But it also caused challenges. "Newfound wealth meant we could purchase newfound drugs to alleviate the monotony" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it applies for so many bands."
During the party-filled existence, the duo were also drifting apart, but they managed to create a follow-up memorable record - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to focus on other projects.
Almond went on to have a successful individual path, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who combined acid house with melodic sounds over a long-lasting partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell came back together in 2001, producing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
After a further hiatus, they returned in 2018, releasing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was supposed to be a final performance at the O2 Arena on 30 September, that year.
Yet, they stayed active, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball recently described the duo's new album as a tribute to the NYC nightlife they frequented while making their initial records.
He noted that his time in medical care had shaped the group's music.
"I experienced strange recollections when I was in and out of hospital because I was on pain medication," he told a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the noises in my mind from that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times we had in the 80s."
The final mixes were finished only days before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for release in the spring of 2026.
