Dave Ball, a key member of the groundbreaking 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with singer Marc Almond, the pair scored a global success with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a classic of synth-pop.
He later founded the innovative techno group The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly in his rest at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in Henley-on-Thames.
Recent Health Challenges
During that show, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, after a period of health issues.
"I managed to damage myself significantly," he stated in 2023. "I broke lower vertebrae in my spine and fractured about multiple ribs and fractured my wrist."
After catching pneumonia and developing sepsis, he was put in an induced coma and stayed in the hospital for seven months.
Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" during the summer, as he worked on a new album with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication next year.
"He was concentrated and so happy with the new album that we actually finished only a few days ago," stated the vocalist in a heartfelt message.
"It's so sad as next year was all set to be such an uplifting year for him, and I find comfort from the fact that he heard the completed album and believed that it was a masterpiece."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond described his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", adding: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our legacy.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense aspect of my life and for the songs you created with me. I couldn't be where I am without you."
Richard Norris from The Grid, shared his condolences, recalling Ball's "constant humor" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a duo with someone is distinct from joining a band, the bond is incredibly close," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, memorable moments as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in the late 50s, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months of age.
He grew up in Blackpool with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who altered his first name from Paul to David, alongside his sibling his sister, who was similarly welcomed.
He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both learning fine arts. Fuelled by a shared love of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and quickly recorded an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The duo were an unusual pairing: Ball was the reserved technician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all sparkle and makeup; but they attained a rare musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with synthesizers after watching the band Kraftwerk perform on a television science show Tomorrow's World, and began to marry moody electronic sounds to the catchy tunes Almond was writing.
Their signature song became the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling single of 1981, shifting millions of units worldwide. Alongside hits by Gary Numan, Human League and electronic acts, it contributed to cleared the path for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The song was also featured on their full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two additional top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at number two in 1982.
Career Highlights
Success had its upsides. "I loved being able to purchase my first home, having money and travelling, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago told with a music magazine.
But it also presented challenges. "Sudden riches allowed we could purchase substances to relieve the monotony" of media interviews and television shows, Ball said.
"I know that's a common saying, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it works for so many bands."
During the party-filled existence, the pair were also growing distant, but they managed to create a second classic album - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out one more album, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to focus on individual endeavors.
Almond went on to have a successful solo career, including the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who combined dance music with ambient pop over a long-lasting collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, producing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
After another break, they returned in 2018, releasing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was intended to be a farewell show at the large venue on September 30, 2018.
However, they stayed active, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball lately characterized the band's upcoming release as a homage to the New York club scene they frequented while making their initial records.
He added that his time in medical care had influenced the group's music.
"I had unusual memories when I was coming and going 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 that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times we got up to in the 80s."
The last versions were completed only days before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for release in the spring of 2026.
