Dave Ball, a key member of the pioneering 1980s synth-pop duo Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Alongside singer Marc Almond, the team scored a global success with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in 1984, and their debut album their initial full-length release is considered a classic of electronic music.
He later formed the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who achieved chart success with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly in his rest at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Recent Health Challenges
At that performance, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, following a spate of health issues.
"I managed to injure myself quite a bit," he commented in 2023. "I broke spinal bones in my spine and fractured about multiple ribs and broke my wrist."
After catching a lung infection and suffering from blood poisoning, he was placed in an induced coma and stayed in hospital for seven months.
Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place emotionally" during the summer, as he was developing a fresh record with Almond, called Danceteria, which is set for publication next year.
"He was concentrated and very pleased with the new album that we actually completed only a short time ago," stated the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was completely planned to be such an positive year for him, and I find comfort from the fact that he listened to the finished record and felt that it was a masterpiece."
Heartfelt Messages
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 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."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a partnership with someone is distinct from joining a band, the bond is very tight," he added.
"That was the case with us. We went through so many remarkable, incredible, memorable moments together. Many thanks, Dave."
Early Life
Born into a one-parent family in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was given up for adoption when he was a year and a half old.
He was raised in Blackpool with his new family his caregivers, who changed his given name from his birth name to David, alongside his sibling his sister, who was also adopted.
He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both studying art. Inspired by a shared love of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and quickly produced an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The duo were an distinctive combination: Ball was the reserved technician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they attained a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with electronic instruments after viewing the band Kraftwerk appear on BBC program a popular series, and started to combine moody electronic sounds to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second biggest-selling single of the early 80s, selling millions of copies globally. Alongside hits by Gary Numan, Human League and electronic acts, it helped cleared the way for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The track was also featured on their full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two further high-charting singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at number two in the following year.
Career Highlights
Success had its upsides. "I loved being able to afford 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 presented problems. "Sudden riches meant we could purchase newfound drugs to alleviate the monotony" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball said.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it applies for so many bands."
Amidst the party-filled existence, the pair were also drifting apart, but they succeeded to produce a follow-up memorable record - the wayward, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out another LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to concentrate on individual endeavors.
Almond proceeded to have a prosperous solo career, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed acid house with ambient pop over a enduring partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, producing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further break, they reappeared in recent years, releasing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was supposed to be a farewell show at the large venue on 30 September, 2018.
Yet, they remained active, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball lately described the duo's new album as a homage to the New York club scene they visited while recording their first two albums.
He added that his time in medical care had shaped the band's sound.
"I experienced strange recollections when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on morphine," he told a music magazine.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the noises in my mind from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times me and Marc got up to in the 80s."
The last versions were completed only a short time before Ball died. It is due for release in Spring 2026.