Dave Ball, a key member of the pioneering 1980s synth-pop band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the team achieved a worldwide hit with their version of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a seminal work of synth-pop.
He later founded the pioneering techno group The Grid, who secured chart success with their 1994 single the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully in his sleep at his home in London on October 22, just weeks after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in the Thames-side town.
Health Struggles
At that performance, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, following a period of health issues.
"I ended up injure myself significantly," he stated in 2023. "I fractured spinal bones in my spine and cracked about five ribs and fractured my arm."
Following contracting pneumonia and developing sepsis, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in hospital for half a year.
Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place mentally" during the warmer months, as he worked on a new album with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication next year.
"He was concentrated and very pleased with the new album that we actually completed only a few days ago," stated the vocalist in a heartfelt message.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was all set to be such an uplifting time for him, and I find comfort from the knowledge that he heard the completed album and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Tributes
Almond described his bandmate as "an exceptionally talented musical genius", 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 gave 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 "steadfast support".
"Being in a duo with someone is different from being in a band, the connection is very tight," he added.
"That was the case with us. We went through so many remarkable, extraordinary, life-affirming moments together. Many thanks, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in the city of Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months old.
He was raised in the seaside town with adoptive parents Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his given name from his birth name to his adopted name, together with his younger sister Susan, who was also adopted.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both studying art. Fuelled by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and promptly recorded an EP.
Musical Partnership
The duo were an unusual pairing: Ball was the quiet musician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all glitter and eye-liner; but they achieved a rare musical alchemy.
Ball had developed a interest with synthesizers after watching the band Kraftwerk appear on BBC program a popular series, and began to marry moody electronic sounds to the catchy tunes Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second biggest-selling song of the early 80s, shifting 21 million copies worldwide. Together with successful tracks by other artists, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it helped paved the path for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The track was also featured on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two additional high-charting hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at number two in 1982.
Professional Journey
Fame had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my first home, having financial security and travelling, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago shared with a publication.
But it also caused problems. "Sudden riches allowed we could purchase substances to relieve the boredom" of press appearances and television shows, Ball said.
"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it applies for so many bands."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also drifting apart, but they managed to create a follow-up classic album - the wayward, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the group to concentrate on other projects.
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 mixed dance music with melodic sounds over a enduring partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, producing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another break, they reappeared in recent years, releasing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was supposed to be a farewell show at the O2 Arena on September 30, that year.
Yet, they remained active, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.
Ball lately described the band's new album as a homage to the NYC nightlife they visited while making their initial records.
He noted that his period in medical care had influenced the band's sound.
"I had strange recollections when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on pain medication," he explained to a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the sounds in my mind from that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences we got up to in the 80s."
The last versions were finished only a short time before Ball died. It is scheduled for launch in the spring of 2026.
