Dave Ball, a key member of the pioneering 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the pair scored a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in 1984, and their debut album their initial full-length release is regarded as a seminal work of electronic music.
He subsequently formed the pioneering techno group The Grid, who achieved chart success with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball died calmly in his sleep at his home in London on October 22, only a short time after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
During that performance, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the previous couple of years, following a period of ill-health.
"I managed to injure myself significantly," he commented in a recent interview. "I broke lower vertebrae in my back and fractured about multiple ribs and fractured my wrist."
Following catching a lung infection and suffering from sepsis, he was placed in an induced coma and remained in the hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" during the summer, as he was developing a new album with Almond, called Danceteria, which is set for release in the coming year.
"He was focused and so happy with the new album that we literally finished only a few days ago," stated the vocalist in a heartfelt message.
"It's truly heartbreaking 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 felt that it was a great piece of work."
Tributes
Almond described 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 music you gave me. I couldn't be where I am without you."
Richard Norris from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".
"Being in a duo with someone is different from joining a band, the connection is very tight," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences together. Thank you, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in the city of Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months old.
He grew up in Blackpool with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his given name from Paul to his adopted name, together with his sibling his sister, who was also adopted.
He met Almond at an art college in the late 70s, where they were both learning art. Inspired by a shared love of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the very year, and promptly produced an EP.
Musical Partnership
The duo were an unusual pairing: Ball was the reserved musician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all glitter and makeup; but they attained a rare musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with synthesizers after viewing Kraftwerk perform on a television program Tomorrow's World, and started to combine dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second most popular single of 1981, selling millions of units globally. Together with successful tracks by Gary Numan, Human League and Ultravox, it contributed to cleared the way for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The track was also featured on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two further top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the record up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at number two in 1982.
Professional Journey
Success had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to afford my initial property, having money and travelling, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball not long ago shared with a music magazine.
But it also presented challenges. "Sudden riches allowed we could afford substances to relieve the boredom" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball said.
"I know 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 growing distant, but they managed to produce a second classic album - the unconventional, edgy and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released another album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to focus on individual endeavors.
Almond went on to have a prosperous solo career, including the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed acid house with ambient pop over a enduring partnership.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, producing the Top 40 record Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another break, they reappeared 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 O2 Arena on September 30, that year.
Yet, they stayed 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 added that his time in medical care had influenced the group's music.
"I experienced strange recollections when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on pain medication," he explained to a music magazine.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the noises in my mind from that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences we got up to in the 1980s."
The final mixes were finished only a short time before Ball passed away. It is due for launch in the spring of 2026.
