Dave Ball, a key member of the pioneering 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Alongside singer Marc Almond, the pair scored a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track 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 achieved chart success with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball died peacefully in his rest at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Recent Health Challenges
During that performance, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, following a spate of ill-health.
"I ended up damage myself significantly," he stated in 2023. "I broke lower vertebrae in my back and cracked about multiple ribs and broke my wrist."
Following contracting a lung infection and suffering from sepsis, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in the hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "a great place emotionally" during the warmer months, as he was developing a new album with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for release in the coming year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we literally finished only a short time ago," said the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's so sad as next year was completely planned to be such an positive year for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he heard the finished record and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Tributes
Almond described his bandmate as "an exceptionally talented musical genius", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our legacy.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense aspect of my life and for the music you gave me. I couldn't be where I am without you."
Richard Norris from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Being in a partnership with someone is different from joining a band, the connection is very tight," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many remarkable, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Early Life
Born into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was a year and a half of age.
He was raised in Blackpool with his new family his caregivers, who changed his given name from his birth name to his adopted name, alongside his younger sister his sister, who was similarly welcomed.
He encountered Almond at an art college in the late 70s, where they were both studying art. Inspired by a shared love of Northern Soul, they established Soft Cell the same year, and promptly recorded an extended play.
Creative Collaboration
The duo were an distinctive combination: Ball was the quiet musician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all glitter and makeup; but they achieved a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had developed a fascination with electronic instruments after viewing the band Kraftwerk perform on a television program a popular series, and started to marry moody electronic sounds to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.
Their signature song became the UK's second most popular single of the early 80s, selling 21 million units globally. Alongside hits by Gary Numan, Human League and Ultravox, it helped cleared the path for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The song was also included on their first album, their initial LP, which spawned two additional top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the record up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at the second position in 1982.
Career Highlights
Fame had its benefits. "I loved being able to purchase my initial property, having financial security and exploring, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago told with a music magazine.
But it also caused problems. "Newfound wealth meant we could purchase substances to relieve the monotony" of press appearances and television shows, Ball explained.
"I know that's a common saying, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it applies for so many bands."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, the pair were also growing distant, but they succeeded to create a follow-up memorable record - the wayward, edgy and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more album, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to concentrate on other projects.
Almond went on to have a prosperous individual path, including the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who combined acid house with melodic sounds over a enduring collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell came back together in 2001, producing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further hiatus, they reappeared in recent years, releasing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was supposed to be a final performance at the O2 Arena on 30 September, 2018.
However, they stayed together, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic restrictions.
Ball lately described the band's new album as a homage to the New York club scene they visited while recording their first two albums.
He noted that his period in hospital had shaped the group's music.
"I experienced strange recollections when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on pain medication," he explained to a music magazine.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the sounds in my mind from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences me and Marc got up to in the 1980s."
The final mixes were finished only days before Ball died. It is scheduled for launch in the spring of 2026.
