Dave Ball, a key member of the innovative 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the pair scored a global success with their version of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in 1984, and their first record their initial full-length release is regarded as a classic of electronic music.
He later formed the innovative techno group The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully in his rest at his home in London on October 22, just weeks after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
During that show, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, following a spate of health issues.
"I managed to damage myself significantly," he stated in a recent interview. "I broke lower vertebrae in my back and fractured about five ribs and broke my arm."
Following contracting a lung infection and suffering from blood poisoning, he was placed in an induced coma and remained in the hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "a great place mentally" during the warmer months, as he worked on a new album with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is scheduled for release in the coming year.
"He was focused and so happy with the latest project that we actually completed only a short time ago," stated the vocalist in a heartfelt message.
"It's so sad as next year was completely planned to be such an uplifting year 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 extremely pleased of our legacy.
"Many thanks Dave for being an immense aspect of my existence and for the songs you gave me. I wouldn't be where I am without your influence."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a duo 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, memorable experiences together. Thank you, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in Chester in 1959, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months of age.
He grew up in the seaside town with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his first name from Paul to David, alongside his younger sister Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both learning art. Inspired by a mutual passion of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the very year, and promptly recorded an extended play.
Musical Partnership
The duo were an distinctive combination: Ball was the quiet technician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant showman, all glitter and makeup; but they achieved a rare musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a interest with electronic instruments after viewing Kraftwerk appear on a television science show a popular series, and began to combine moody electronic sounds to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second most popular single of 1981, shifting 21 million units globally. Alongside hits by Gary Numan, Human League and Ultravox, it contributed to paved the path for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The song was also included on their full-length debut, their initial LP, which spawned two additional top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at number two in the following year.
Career Highlights
Fame had its upsides. "I loved being able to purchase my initial property, having financial security and exploring, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball not long ago told with a music magazine.
But it also presented challenges. "Newfound wealth meant we could purchase substances to relieve the boredom" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it works for so many musicians."
Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also drifting apart, but they succeeded to produce a second memorable record - the unconventional, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out one more album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to focus on other projects.
Almond proceeded to have a prosperous individual path, featuring 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 long-lasting collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, producing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
After another break, they reappeared in 2018, releasing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was intended to be a final performance at the O2 Arena on 30 September, that year.
However, they stayed together, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball recently described the band's new album as a homage to the NYC nightlife they frequented while making their first two albums.
He noted that his period 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 music magazine.
"The new songs are a digital reflection of the noises in my mind from that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times me and Marc had in the 80s."
The last versions were completed only days before Ball passed away. It is due for launch in the spring of 2026.
