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 1984, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a classic of electronic music.
He later formed the pioneering techno group The Grid, who secured chart success with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball died calmly in his rest at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in the Thames-side town.
Health Struggles
During that show, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, after a period of health issues.
"I managed to damage myself quite a bit," he stated in 2023. "I broke spinal bones in my back and fractured about multiple ribs and fractured my arm."
Following catching a lung infection and developing sepsis, he was placed in an induced coma and remained in the hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "high spirits mentally" during the warmer months, as he was developing a fresh record with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is scheduled for release in the coming year.
"He was focused and so happy with the latest project that we actually finished only a short time ago," said the vocalist in a heartfelt message.
"It's so sad as next year was completely planned to be such an positive time for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he listened to the finished record and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Tributes
Almond referred to his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense part of my life 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, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".
"Forming a partnership with someone is distinct from being in a band, the bond is incredibly close," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, memorable moments as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in Chester in 1959, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half of age.
He grew up in the seaside town with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his first name from his birth name to David, together with his sibling Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He encountered Almond at an art college in the late 70s, where they were both learning art. Fuelled by a mutual passion of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and promptly produced an EP.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an unusual pairing: Ball was the reserved musician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant showman, all glitter and eye-liner; but they achieved a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had developed a fascination with electronic instruments after watching Kraftwerk appear on a television program Tomorrow's World, and started to combine moody electronic sounds to the catchy tunes Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second most popular single of 1981, selling 21 million units worldwide. Alongside successful tracks by other artists, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it helped paved the way for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The track was also included on their full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two further top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at the second position in 1982.
Career Highlights
Success had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to afford my initial property, having financial security and travelling, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago told with a publication.
But it also caused challenges. "Sudden riches meant we could purchase substances to relieve the boredom" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball said.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it applies for so many musicians."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, the pair were also growing distant, but they managed to produce a second memorable record - the unconventional, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out one more LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to focus on other projects.
Almond went on to have a prosperous solo career, including the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who combined acid house with melodic sounds over a enduring partnership.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, producing the Top 40 record Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further hiatus, they returned in recent years, issuing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was intended to be a farewell show at the large venue on 30 September, 2018.
Yet, they stayed active, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.
Ball lately characterized the duo's new album as a homage to the New York club scene they visited while recording their initial records.
He added that his time in medical care had shaped the band's sound.
"I had unusual memories when I was in and out of hospital because I was on morphine," he told a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the sounds in my head from those days.
"In parallel, it's about the experiences me and Marc had in the 80s."
The last versions were finished only a short time before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for launch in the spring of 2026.
