Dave Ball, a key member of the innovative 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the pair achieved 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 seminal work of electronic music.
He subsequently founded the innovative electronic act The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball died calmly in his sleep at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after performing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.
Health Struggles
During that show, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the previous couple of years, following a period of ill-health.
"I managed to injure myself quite a bit," he commented in a recent interview. "I fractured spinal bones in my back and fractured about five ribs and broke my wrist."
Following catching pneumonia and developing sepsis, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in the hospital for seven months.
Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" during the summer, as he was developing a fresh record with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication next year.
"He was focused and so happy with the latest project that we actually completed only a short time ago," said the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's so sad as next year was all set to be such an positive time for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he listened to the completed album and believed that it was a masterpiece."
Tributes
Almond described his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", adding: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.
"Many thanks Dave for being an immense aspect of my life and for the songs you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without your influence."
Richard Norris from The Grid, also paid tribute, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".
"Being in a duo with someone is different from joining a group, the bond is incredibly close," he continued.
"That was the case with us. We went through so many remarkable, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences together. Many thanks, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months old.
He was raised in Blackpool with adoptive parents his caregivers, who changed his given name from his birth name to his adopted name, together with his younger sister Susan, who was also adopted.
He encountered Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both learning art. Inspired by a mutual passion of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the very year, and promptly produced an extended play.
Creative Collaboration
The duo were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the reserved musician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they attained a rare creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a interest with electronic instruments after watching Kraftwerk appear on a television program Tomorrow's World, and started to marry moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second most popular song of 1981, shifting 21 million units worldwide. Alongside hits by Gary Numan, Human League and Ultravox, it contributed to cleared the path for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The track was also featured on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which spawned two additional top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the record up with the separate release, Torch, which peaked at the second position in the following year.
Career Highlights
Fame had its upsides. "I loved being able to purchase my first home, having money and exploring, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball recently told with a publication.
But it also presented challenges. "Newfound wealth allowed we could purchase newfound drugs to alleviate the boredom" of press appearances and television shows, Ball said.
"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it applies for so many musicians."
During the party-filled existence, the duo were also drifting apart, but they succeeded to create a follow-up classic album - the wayward, edgy and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out another LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to focus on individual endeavors.
Almond proceeded to have a successful individual path, featuring the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who combined dance music with ambient pop over a long-lasting partnership.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, producing the Top 40 record Cruelty Without Beauty.
After another hiatus, they returned in recent years, issuing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was supposed to be a final performance at the large venue on 30 September, 2018.
However, they stayed together, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball recently characterized the duo's new album as a homage to the New York club scene they frequented while recording their first two albums.
He added that his time in medical care had shaped the group's music.
"I experienced unusual memories when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on morphine," he told a music magazine.
"The new songs are a electronic representation of the sounds in my mind from those days.
"In parallel, it's about the experiences we got up to in the 80s."
The final mixes were completed only a short time before Ball died. It is scheduled for release in Spring 2026.
