Dave Ball, a key member of the groundbreaking 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Alongside singer Marc Almond, the duo scored a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in 1984, and their debut album their initial full-length release is considered a classic of electronic music.
He later formed the innovative techno group The Grid, who secured chart success with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully in his rest at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in the Thames-side town.
Recent Health Challenges
During that show, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, after a spate of ill-health.
"I ended up injure myself quite a bit," he stated in a recent interview. "I broke lower vertebrae in my spine and fractured about five ribs and broke my wrist."
After contracting pneumonia and suffering from sepsis, 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, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for release in the coming year.
"He was focused and so happy with the latest project that we literally completed only a few days ago," stated the singer in a heartfelt message.
"It's so sad as next year was completely planned to be such an uplifting year for him, and I find comfort from the fact that he heard the finished record and believed that it was a masterpiece."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond referred to his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", stating: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense part of my life and for the songs you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without you."
Richard Norris from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Being in a partnership with someone is distinct from joining a band, the bond is very tight," he added.
"That was the case with us. We experienced so many remarkable, incredible, life-affirming experiences as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Born into a single-parent household in the city of Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was a year and a half old.
He was raised in Blackpool with adoptive parents Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his first name from Paul to David, alongside his younger sister his sister, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both learning art. Fuelled by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and quickly produced an extended play.
Creative Collaboration
The pair were an distinctive combination: Ball was the reserved musician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant showman, all glitter and eye-liner; but they attained a unique creative synergy.
Ball had developed a fascination with electronic instruments after watching the band Kraftwerk perform on a television science show a popular series, and started to combine dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second most popular single of 1981, selling 21 million units globally. Together with successful tracks by Gary Numan, Human League and Ultravox, it contributed to paved the way for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The song was also featured on their full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two additional top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at number two in 1982.
Career Highlights
Fame had its upsides. "I loved being able to purchase my initial property, having money and exploring, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball recently shared with a music magazine.
But it also presented problems. "Newfound wealth meant we could afford newfound drugs to relieve the boredom" of press appearances and television shows, Ball said.
"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it applies for so many musicians."
Amidst the party-filled existence, the pair were also drifting apart, but they succeeded to produce a follow-up classic album - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out another LP, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to focus on individual endeavors.
Almond went on to have a prosperous individual path, including the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who combined acid house with ambient pop over a long-lasting collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, producing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
After another hiatus, they returned in recent years, releasing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was intended to be a farewell show at the large venue on September 30, that year.
Yet, they remained active, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball recently described the band's new album as a homage to the New York club scene they frequented while recording their initial records.
He noted that his period in hospital had influenced the band's sound.
"I had strange recollections when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on morphine," he told a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the noises in my mind from that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences me and Marc had in the 80s."
The last versions were finished only days before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for release in the spring of 2026.
