Dave Ball, a key member of the pioneering 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the pair achieved a worldwide hit 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 classic of synth-pop.
He later founded the innovative electronic act The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly 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 music event in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
At that performance, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, following a spate of health issues.
"I ended up injure myself significantly," he stated in 2023. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my spine and cracked about five ribs and broke my arm."
After catching pneumonia and suffering from blood poisoning, he was placed in an induced coma and stayed in hospital for half a year.
Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" over the warmer months, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication next year.
"He was concentrated and very pleased with the new album that we literally finished only a short time ago," said the singer in a tribute.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was all set to be such an positive year for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he heard the completed album and felt that it was a masterpiece."
Tributes
Almond referred to his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", adding: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.
"Thank you 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."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a duo with someone is different from being in a band, the connection is incredibly close," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many extraordinary, incredible, life-affirming moments as a team. Many thanks, Dave."
Early Life
Born into a single-parent household in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half old.
He was raised in Blackpool with adoptive parents his caregivers, who changed his first name from his birth name to David, together with his sibling his sister, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both studying art. Inspired by a mutual passion of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the same year, and promptly produced an extended play.
Creative Collaboration
The pair were an unusual combination: Ball was the quiet technician, hunched over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they achieved a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had developed a fascination with synthesizers after viewing Kraftwerk appear on a television program a popular series, and began to marry dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second most popular single of the early 80s, selling millions of units globally. Together with hits by other artists, Human League and electronic acts, it contributed to cleared the way for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The track was also included on their first album, their initial LP, which produced two additional top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at number two in 1982.
Career Highlights
Fame had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to afford my initial property, having money and travelling, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball not long ago told with a publication.
But it also presented challenges. "Newfound wealth meant we could purchase substances to alleviate the boredom" of media interviews and television shows, Ball explained.
"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a truism for a good reason, because it works for so many bands."
Amidst the party-filled existence, the pair were also drifting apart, but they succeeded to create a follow-up memorable record - the unconventional, edgy and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released another LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the group to concentrate 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 dance music with melodic sounds over a enduring partnership.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, producing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
After another hiatus, they returned in 2018, issuing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was supposed to be a final performance at the O2 Arena on September 30, 2018.
However, they stayed active, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.
Ball lately described the band's new album as a tribute to the New York club scene they frequented while recording their first two albums.
He noted that his time in hospital had shaped the group's music.
"I had strange recollections when I was in and out of hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the sounds in my head from those days.
"In parallel, it's about the times me and Marc got up to in the 80s."
The final mixes were finished only days before Ball died. It is scheduled for release in Spring 2026.
