Dave Ball, a key member of the pioneering 1980s synth-pop band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the duo scored a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album their initial full-length release is regarded as a classic of electronic music.
He subsequently formed the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who secured chart success with their 1994 single the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball died 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 Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
During that show, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a spate of health issues.
"I managed to damage myself significantly," he stated in 2023. "I broke lower vertebrae in my spine and fractured about multiple ribs and fractured my wrist."
After contracting a lung infection and suffering from sepsis, he was placed in an induced coma and remained in the hospital for seven months.
Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" over the summer, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication in the coming year.
"He was concentrated and very pleased with the new album that we actually completed only a few days ago," said the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was all set to be such an uplifting time for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he heard the finished record and felt that it was a great piece of work."
Tributes
Almond described his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", 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 life and for the music you created with me. I couldn't be where I am without your influence."
Richard Norris from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Being in a duo with someone is distinct from joining a band, the connection is very tight," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, 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 18 months of age.
He grew up in Blackpool with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who altered his first name from his birth name to David, alongside his sibling Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both learning fine arts. Inspired by a shared love of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the very year, and quickly recorded an extended play.
Creative Collaboration
The duo were an unusual pairing: Ball was the reserved musician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all glitter and makeup; but they achieved a rare musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with electronic instruments after watching the band Kraftwerk appear on a television science show Tomorrow's World, and started to combine dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second biggest-selling single of 1981, selling millions of units globally. Alongside successful tracks by other artists, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it helped cleared the path for the synth-pop sound of the 80s.
The song was also featured on their first album, their initial LP, which produced two further high-charting hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the record up with the separate release, Torch, which peaked at number two in 1982.
Professional Journey
Fame had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my first home, having money and travelling, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball not long ago shared with a publication.
But it also caused challenges. "Sudden riches meant we could purchase substances to relieve the boredom" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball said.
"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it applies for so many musicians."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, the pair were also growing distant, but they managed to produce a follow-up classic album - 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 went on to have a prosperous solo career, featuring the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed acid house with melodic sounds over a long-lasting partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell came back together in 2001, releasing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
After another hiatus, they reappeared in recent years, issuing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was supposed to be a final performance at the O2 Arena on September 30, that year.
Yet, they remained together, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball lately described the duo's new album as a homage to the NYC nightlife they frequented while recording their initial records.
He noted that his time in hospital had shaped the band's sound.
"I experienced strange recollections when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on pain medication," he told a publication.
"The new songs are a digital reflection of the sounds in my mind from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times we had in the 80s."
The last versions were completed only days before Ball died. It is scheduled for launch in Spring 2026.
