Dave Ball, a key member of the innovative 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with singer 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 first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a classic of synth-pop.
He later founded the pioneering techno group The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully in his rest at his residence in London on October 22, only a short time after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
During that performance, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, following a period of health issues.
"I ended up damage myself significantly," he stated in a recent interview. "I fractured spinal bones in my spine and cracked about multiple ribs and broke my wrist."
Following contracting pneumonia and developing blood poisoning, he was put in an induced coma and stayed in hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "a great place mentally" during the summer, as he was developing a new album with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for release next year.
"He was concentrated and so happy with the new album that we literally completed only a few days ago," said the singer in a tribute.
"It's so sad as next year was completely planned to be such an uplifting time 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 described his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", adding: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our legacy.
"Many thanks Dave for being an significant part of my existence and for the music you created with me. I couldn't be where I am without your influence."
Richard Norris from The Grid, shared his condolences, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".
"Forming a partnership with someone is different from being in a band, the bond is very tight," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many remarkable, incredible, life-affirming experiences as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in Chester in 1959, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months old.
He was raised in the seaside town with adoptive parents Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his given name from Paul to David, alongside his younger sister Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both learning art. Inspired by a shared love of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and quickly produced an extended play.
Creative Collaboration
The duo were an unusual combination: Ball was the quiet musician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they achieved a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a interest with electronic instruments after watching the band Kraftwerk appear on a television program Tomorrow's World, and began to combine dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Their signature song became the United Kingdom'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 paved the path for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The song was also included on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two additional high-charting hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at the second position in 1982.
Professional Journey
Fame had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to afford my first home, having money and exploring, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball recently told with a publication.
But it also caused problems. "Sudden riches allowed we could purchase substances to alleviate the monotony" of media interviews and television shows, Ball said.
"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it applies for so many bands."
Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the pair were also growing distant, but they managed to create a second classic album - the unconventional, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released another album, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to focus on other projects.
Almond went on to have a successful individual path, including the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who combined acid house with ambient pop over a enduring collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, producing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further break, they reappeared in 2018, releasing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was intended to be a farewell show at the large venue on 30 September, that year.
However, they remained active, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball lately described the duo's upcoming release as a tribute to the New York club scene they frequented while making their first two albums.
He noted that his time in hospital had influenced the band's sound.
"I had strange recollections when I was in and out of hospital because I was on morphine," he told a publication.
"The new songs are a electronic representation of the noises in my mind from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times we got up to in the 80s."
The final mixes were completed only a short time before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for release in the spring of 2026.
