Dave Ball, a key member of the groundbreaking 1980s synth-pop duo Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Alongside singer Marc Almond, the duo scored a worldwide hit with their version of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record their initial full-length release is regarded as a seminal work of synth-pop.
He later founded the innovative electronic act The Grid, who secured chart success with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball died peacefully in his rest at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in Henley-on-Thames.
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 damage myself significantly," he commented in 2023. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my back and fractured about five ribs and fractured my arm."
After catching a lung infection and developing blood poisoning, he was put in an induced coma and remained in the hospital for half a year.
Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place emotionally" during the warmer months, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for publication next year.
"He was concentrated and so happy with the new album that we actually 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 positive time for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he heard the completed album and felt that it was a great piece of work."
Tributes
Almond referred to his bandmate as "an exceptionally talented musical genius", adding: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our legacy.
"Many thanks Dave for being an significant aspect of my life and for the songs you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without your influence."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "steadfast support".
"Being in a duo with someone is distinct from being in a band, the connection is very tight," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many extraordinary, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences together. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Born into a single-parent household in Chester in 1959, Ball was put 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 his birth name to his adopted name, alongside his sibling his sister, who was also adopted.
He encountered Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both learning fine arts. Fuelled by a shared love of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the very year, and quickly recorded an extended play.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the reserved musician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a flamboyant showman, all glitter and eye-liner; but they achieved a unique creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a interest 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 soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Their signature song became the UK's second biggest-selling single of the early 80s, shifting 21 million copies worldwide. Together with hits by other artists, Human League and Ultravox, it helped paved the way for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The track was also included on their full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which spawned two additional top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at the second position in the following year.
Career Highlights
Success had its benefits. "I loved being able to purchase my first home, having financial security and travelling, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago shared with a publication.
But it also presented challenges. "Sudden riches meant we could afford newfound drugs to relieve the boredom" of media interviews and television shows, Ball explained.
"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it works for so many bands."
During the party-filled existence, the duo were also growing distant, but they managed to create a second memorable record - the unconventional, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out another album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to concentrate on other projects.
Almond went on to have a successful individual path, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who mixed acid house with melodic sounds over a long-lasting collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, producing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another hiatus, they reappeared in recent years, releasing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was intended to be a final performance at the large venue on 30 September, that year.
Yet, they stayed together, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.
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 medical care had influenced the band's sound.
"I had unusual memories when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a publication.
"The new songs are a electronic representation of the noises in my head from that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times we had in the 80s."
The final mixes were finished only days before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for release in Spring 2026.
