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 achieved a global success with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a seminal work of synth-pop.
He later formed the innovative techno group The Grid, who achieved chart success with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball died calmly in his rest at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after performing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
At that performance, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the previous couple of years, following a spate of ill-health.
"I managed to injure myself quite a bit," he stated in 2023. "I broke spinal bones in my spine and fractured about multiple ribs and fractured my arm."
Following contracting a lung infection and suffering from sepsis, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and remained in hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "a great place mentally" during the summer, as he was developing a fresh record with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for release next year.
"He was concentrated and so happy with the latest project that we actually 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 uplifting time for him, and I find comfort from the knowledge that he listened to the completed album and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond referred to his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.
"Many thanks Dave for being an significant aspect of my life and for the music you created with 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 distinct from joining a band, the connection is incredibly close," he continued.
"That was the case with us. We experienced so many extraordinary, incredible, life-affirming experiences together. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in 1959, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half old.
He grew up in the seaside town with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his given name from his birth name to his adopted name, alongside his younger sister Susan, who was also adopted.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both learning art. Inspired by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and promptly produced an EP.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an unusual combination: Ball was the reserved technician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all sparkle and makeup; but they attained a rare musical alchemy.
Ball had developed a interest with electronic instruments after viewing the band Kraftwerk appear on BBC science show a popular series, and started to combine moody electronic sounds to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.
Their signature song became the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling single of the early 80s, shifting millions of units globally. Together with hits by Gary Numan, Human League and Ultravox, it contributed to cleared the way for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The song was also included on their full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which spawned two further top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at number two in the following year.
Career Highlights
Success had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my initial property, having money and travelling, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball recently told with a publication.
But it also presented challenges. "Newfound wealth allowed we could purchase substances to relieve the monotony" of media interviews and television shows, Ball said.
"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a good reason, because it works for so many bands."
Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the pair were also growing distant, but they managed to produce a second classic album - the unconventional, edgy and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out one more LP, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to focus on other projects.
Almond proceeded to have a successful solo career, including the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed dance music with melodic sounds over a long-lasting partnership.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, releasing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another break, they returned in recent years, issuing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was intended to be a farewell show at the large venue on 30 September, 2018.
However, they stayed together, creating their latest project, 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 making their initial records.
He added that his period 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 pain medication," he told a music magazine.
"The new songs are a electronic representation of the sounds in my head from that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times we had in the 1980s."
The final mixes were finished only days before Ball died. It is scheduled for release in Spring 2026.
