Dave Ball, a key member of the groundbreaking 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the team scored a worldwide hit with their version of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album their initial full-length release is regarded as a classic of synth-pop.
He subsequently formed the pioneering techno group The Grid, who achieved chart success with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly in his rest at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after playing a headline show 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 previous couple of years, following a period of health issues.
"I managed to damage myself quite a bit," he commented in a recent interview. "I fractured spinal bones in my back and fractured about multiple ribs and fractured my arm."
After catching a lung infection and suffering from sepsis, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "a great place mentally" during the warmer months, as he was developing a new album with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for publication next year.
"He was concentrated and very pleased with the new album that we actually finished only a few days ago," said the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was completely planned to be such an uplifting time for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he heard the finished record and felt that it was a masterpiece."
Tributes
Almond described his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", stating: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our body of work.
"Thank you Dave for being an significant part of my existence and for the music you gave me. I wouldn't be where I am without your influence."
Richard Norris from The Grid, also paid tribute, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".
"Forming a duo with someone is distinct from joining a group, the connection is very tight," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many remarkable, extraordinary, memorable moments together. Many thanks, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was given 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 first name from Paul to his adopted name, alongside his younger sister his sister, who was also adopted.
He met Almond at an art college in the late 70s, where they were both learning art. Fuelled by a shared love of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and quickly recorded an EP.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the quiet technician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all glitter and eye-liner; but they attained a rare creative synergy.
Ball had developed a fascination with electronic instruments after viewing Kraftwerk perform on a television program a popular series, and began to combine dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second biggest-selling song of 1981, selling millions of units globally. Together with successful tracks by other artists, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it contributed to paved the path for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The song was also featured on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which spawned two further high-charting hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the separate release, Torch, which peaked at number two in the following year.
Career Highlights
Fame had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my first home, having financial security and travelling, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball recently shared with a publication.
But it also presented problems. "Newfound wealth meant we could afford newfound drugs to relieve the boredom" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball said.
"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it works for so many bands."
Amidst the party-filled existence, the duo were also growing distant, but they succeeded to create a second memorable record - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more LP, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to focus on other projects.
Almond proceeded to have a prosperous solo career, featuring the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who combined dance music with melodic sounds over a long-lasting partnership.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, producing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another break, they reappeared in 2018, issuing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was intended to be a final performance at the large venue on 30 September, that year.
Yet, they stayed active, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball lately described the duo's upcoming release as a tribute to the New York club scene they visited while recording their initial records.
He added that his period in hospital had shaped the group's music.
"I had unusual memories when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on pain medication," he told a publication.
"The new songs are a electronic representation of the sounds in my head from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times we got up to in the 80s."
The last versions were finished only days before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for release in the spring of 2026.
