Dave Ball, a key member of the pioneering 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the duo achieved a global success with their version of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in 1984, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a seminal work of electronic music.
He subsequently founded the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully in his rest at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
At that show, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a period of health issues.
"I managed to injure myself quite a bit," he stated in 2023. "I fractured spinal bones in my spine and cracked about multiple ribs and fractured my arm."
After contracting pneumonia and developing blood poisoning, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and remained in the hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "a great place emotionally" during the summer, as he worked on a new album with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is scheduled for release in the coming year.
"He was focused and so happy 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 time for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he listened to the completed album and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Tributes
Almond described his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", adding: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our legacy.
"Many thanks 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 you."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, shared his condolences, recalling Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".
"Forming a duo with someone is different from being in a band, the bond is incredibly close," he continued.
"That was the case with us. We went through so many extraordinary, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences as a team. Many thanks, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in the city of Chester in 1959, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half of age.
He grew up in Blackpool with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his given name from Paul to David, alongside his sibling his sister, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both learning fine arts. Fuelled by a mutual passion of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the very year, and promptly recorded an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The pair were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the reserved technician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all glitter and eye-liner; but they attained a rare creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with electronic instruments after watching Kraftwerk perform on a television science show Tomorrow's World, and started to marry dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.
Their signature song became the UK's second biggest-selling single of the early 80s, selling 21 million copies globally. Together with successful tracks by other artists, Human League and Ultravox, it contributed to paved the path for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The track was also included on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which spawned two additional high-charting singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the record up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at number two in the following year.
Professional Journey
Fame had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my first home, having financial security and exploring, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball recently shared with a publication.
But it also caused challenges. "Newfound wealth meant we could afford substances to alleviate the monotony" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it applies for so many bands."
Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also growing distant, but they managed to create a follow-up memorable record - the unconventional, edgy and aptly-titled 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 went on to have a successful individual path, including the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who combined dance music with ambient pop over a enduring partnership.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, producing the Top 40 record Cruelty Without Beauty.
After another 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 final performance at the O2 Arena on 30 September, 2018.
Yet, they remained together, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball lately described the band's new album as a homage to the NYC nightlife they visited while recording their first two albums.
He added that his period in medical care had shaped the band's sound.
"I experienced unusual memories when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a publication.
"The new songs are a electronic representation of the noises in my mind from that time.
"In parallel, it's about the times me and Marc had in the 1980s."
The last versions were completed only days before Ball died. It is due for launch in the spring of 2026.
