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 duo scored a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album their initial full-length release is considered a seminal work of electronic music.
He later formed the innovative techno group The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly in his sleep at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.
Health Struggles
During that show, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, after a spate of health issues.
"I ended up injure myself quite a bit," he commented in a recent interview. "I broke lower vertebrae in my back and cracked about five ribs and broke my arm."
Following contracting pneumonia and suffering from blood poisoning, he was placed in an induced coma and remained in the hospital for half a year.
Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits mentally" over the warmer months, as he worked on a new album with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication next year.
"He was concentrated and very pleased with the latest project that we literally finished only a short time ago," said the vocalist in a heartfelt message.
"It's so sad as next year was all set to be such an positive year for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he heard the finished record 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 body of work.
"Thank you 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 you."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".
"Being in a duo with someone is distinct from being in a group, the bond is very tight," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many remarkable, extraordinary, memorable experiences as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months of age.
He grew up in Blackpool with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who altered his given name from his birth name to his adopted name, together with his younger sister his sister, who was similarly welcomed.
He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic 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 recorded an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The pair were an distinctive combination: Ball was the quiet technician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all sparkle and makeup; but they achieved a rare musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with electronic instruments after watching the band Kraftwerk perform on BBC science show Tomorrow's World, and began to marry moody electronic sounds to the catchy tunes Almond was writing.
Their signature song became the UK's second most popular song of 1981, selling millions of copies worldwide. Alongside successful tracks by Gary Numan, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it helped cleared the path for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The song was also featured on their full-length debut, their initial LP, which spawned two further high-charting singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at the second position in 1982.
Career Highlights
Fame had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my first home, having money and travelling, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball not long ago told with a music magazine.
But it also presented problems. "Sudden riches allowed we could afford newfound drugs to relieve the monotony" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it works for so many musicians."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also growing distant, but they succeeded to create a second memorable record - the unconventional, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out one more album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to concentrate on individual endeavors.
Almond proceeded to have a successful solo career, including the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who combined dance music with ambient pop over a long-lasting partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, releasing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
After a further break, they returned in 2018, releasing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was supposed to be a final performance at the large venue on September 30, that year.
However, they remained active, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.
Ball lately characterized the band's upcoming release as a tribute to the New York club scene they visited while making their first two albums.
He noted that his period in hospital had influenced the group's music.
"I experienced strange recollections when I was in and out of the hospital because I was on pain medication," he explained to a music magazine.
"The new songs are a electronic representation of the sounds in my head from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences me and Marc had in the 80s."
The final mixes were completed only days before Ball died. It is scheduled for release in the spring of 2026.
