Dave Ball, a key member of the pioneering 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the team scored a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album their initial full-length release is regarded as a seminal work of electronic music.
He later founded the innovative techno group The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball died peacefully in his sleep at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in the Thames-side town.
Health Struggles
During that performance, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the previous couple of years, following a spate of ill-health.
"I ended up damage myself quite a bit," he stated in 2023. "I fractured spinal bones in my spine and fractured about multiple ribs and fractured my wrist."
After contracting a lung infection and suffering from blood poisoning, he was placed in an induced coma and stayed in hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" over the warmer months, as he was developing a fresh record with Almond, called Danceteria, which is scheduled for release next year.
"He was concentrated and very pleased with the latest project that we actually finished only a short time ago," stated the vocalist in a heartfelt message.
"It's so sad as next year was completely planned to be such an uplifting year for him, and I find comfort from the fact that he listened to the completed album and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond described his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", adding: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our body of work.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense part of my life and for the music you gave me. I wouldn't be where I am without you."
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 band, the connection is very tight," he continued.
"That was the case with us. We went through so many remarkable, extraordinary, life-affirming moments as a team. Many thanks, Dave."
Early Life
Born into a one-parent family in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months of age.
He was raised in the seaside town with adoptive parents his caregivers, who altered his given name from his birth name to David, alongside his younger sister his sister, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at an art college in the late 70s, where they were both studying art. Fuelled by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they established Soft Cell the same year, and quickly recorded an extended play.
Creative Collaboration
The pair were an unusual combination: Ball was the quiet musician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all glitter and makeup; but they attained a unique creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with synthesizers after watching Kraftwerk perform on BBC program Tomorrow's World, and began to combine dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second biggest-selling single of 1981, shifting millions of copies globally. Alongside hits by Gary Numan, Human League and Ultravox, it helped paved the path for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The track was also featured on their full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two further top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at number two in the following year.
Career Highlights
Success had its upsides. "I loved being able to afford my initial property, having money and exploring, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball recently shared with a music magazine.
But it also caused challenges. "Newfound wealth meant we could purchase substances to relieve the boredom" of press appearances and television shows, Ball said.
"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a good reason, because it works for so many musicians."
During the party-filled existence, the pair were also drifting apart, but they succeeded to produce a follow-up classic album - the unconventional, edgy and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released another album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to focus on individual endeavors.
Almond proceeded to have a prosperous individual path, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who combined acid house with melodic sounds over a enduring collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell came back together in 2001, releasing the Top 40 record Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another hiatus, they reappeared in 2018, issuing the new tracks 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, 2018.
However, they remained together, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.
Ball lately described the band's upcoming release as a homage to the NYC nightlife they frequented while making their first two albums.
He added that his period in hospital had shaped the band's sound.
"I had strange recollections when I was in and out of the hospital because I was on pain medication," he explained to a music magazine.
"The new songs are a digital reflection of the noises in my head from that time.
"In parallel, it's about the times me and Marc had 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.
