Dave Ball, one half of the innovative 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the team scored a global success with their version of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a seminal work of electronic music.
He later founded the innovative electronic act The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball died peacefully in his sleep at his residence in London on October 22, only a short time after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.
Health Struggles
During that performance, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, following a spate of ill-health.
"I managed to injure myself significantly," he commented in 2023. "I broke spinal bones in my back and cracked about multiple ribs and fractured my arm."
After contracting pneumonia and suffering from blood poisoning, he was placed in an induced coma and stayed in hospital for seven months.
Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits mentally" during the warmer months, as he was developing a fresh record with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is scheduled for release in the coming year.
"He was concentrated and so happy with the latest project that we literally finished 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 listened to the completed album and felt that it was a great piece of work."
Tributes
Almond described his collaborator as "an exceptionally talented musical genius", adding: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our legacy.
"Thank you 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."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a partnership with someone is different from joining a band, the bond is incredibly close," he continued.
"That was the case with us. We went through so many remarkable, incredible, memorable experiences as a team. Many thanks, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half old.
He grew up in Blackpool with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his given name from his birth name to David, together with his younger sister his sister, 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 very year, and promptly recorded an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The duo were an distinctive combination: Ball was the quiet technician, hunched over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all glitter and makeup; but they attained a unique creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a interest with synthesizers after viewing Kraftwerk appear on a television science show a popular series, and started to marry dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second most popular single of the early 80s, selling millions of units worldwide. Alongside successful tracks by Gary Numan, Human League and Ultravox, it helped cleared the way for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The song was also included on their first album, their initial LP, which spawned two further high-charting hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the separate release, Torch, which peaked at number two in 1982.
Professional Journey
Fame had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to afford my initial property, having money and exploring, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball not long ago told with a music magazine.
But it also presented problems. "Sudden riches allowed we could purchase substances to relieve the monotony" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it works for so many bands."
Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also growing distant, but they succeeded to create a follow-up memorable record - the wayward, 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 focus 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 acid house with melodic sounds over a long-lasting partnership.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, producing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another break, they reappeared in 2018, 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, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball lately 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 hospital had shaped the band's sound.
"I experienced unusual memories when I was in and out of hospital because I was on pain medication," he explained to a music magazine.
"The new songs are a digital reflection of the noises in my mind from that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times me and Marc had in the 1980s."
The final mixes were finished only a short time before Ball died. It is scheduled for launch in the spring of 2026.
