Dave Ball, a key member of the pioneering 1980s synth-pop duo Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with singer Marc Almond, the pair scored a global success with their version of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in 1984, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a classic of electronic music.
He subsequently founded the innovative techno group The Grid, who achieved chart success with their 1994 single the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly in his rest at his home in London on October 22, just weeks after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
At that performance, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, following a spate of health issues.
"I managed to injure myself significantly," he commented in a recent interview. "I fractured spinal bones in my spine and cracked about multiple ribs and broke my arm."
After catching a lung infection and suffering from sepsis, he was placed in an induced coma and stayed in hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" during the warmer months, as he was developing a new album with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is scheduled for release in the coming year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the latest project that we literally completed only a short time ago," said the vocalist in a heartfelt message.
"It's so sad as next year was all set to be such an positive year for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he listened to the completed album and felt that it was a great piece of work."
Tributes
Almond referred to his collaborator as "an exceptionally talented creative mastermind", adding: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.
"Many thanks Dave for being an immense part of my existence and for the music you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without your influence."
Richard Norris from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Being in a partnership with someone is distinct from being in a group, the connection is incredibly close," he continued.
"That was the case with us. We experienced so many extraordinary, incredible, memorable moments together. Many thanks, Dave."
Formative Years
Born into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in 1959, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months old.
He was raised in Blackpool with his new family his caregivers, who changed his first name from his birth name to his adopted name, alongside his sibling Susan, who was also adopted.
He encountered Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both studying art. Fuelled by a shared love of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the same year, and quickly recorded an extended play.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an unusual combination: Ball was the quiet technician, hunched over his synthesizer, while Almond was a flamboyant showman, all glitter and eye-liner; but they achieved a unique creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with synthesizers after watching the band Kraftwerk perform on a television program a popular series, and started to marry moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Their signature song became the UK's second most popular single of the early 80s, shifting 21 million units globally. Together with hits by Gary Numan, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it contributed to paved the way for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The song was also included on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which spawned two further top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the album up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at the second position in the following year.
Career Highlights
Success had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to afford my initial property, having money and travelling, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball recently shared with a music magazine.
But it also caused challenges. "Sudden riches allowed we could afford newfound drugs to relieve the monotony" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it applies for so many musicians."
Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also drifting apart, but they managed to produce a follow-up memorable record - the unconventional, edgy and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out one more LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to concentrate on individual endeavors.
Almond proceeded to have a successful solo career, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who mixed dance music with melodic sounds over a long-lasting collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell came back together in 2001, releasing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
After another hiatus, they reappeared in recent years, issuing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was supposed to be a farewell show at the large venue on September 30, that year.
However, they stayed together, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic restrictions.
Ball recently described the duo's upcoming release as a homage to the New York club scene they visited while recording their first two albums.
He added that his period in hospital had influenced the group's music.
"I experienced strange recollections when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on pain medication," he explained to a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the sounds in my head from that time.
"In parallel, it's about the experiences me and Marc had in the 80s."
The final mixes were completed only days before Ball died. It is scheduled for launch in the spring of 2026.
