Dave Ball, a key member of the pioneering 1980s synth-pop band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the team scored a global success with their version of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album their initial full-length release is regarded as a classic of synth-pop.
He subsequently founded the innovative techno group The Grid, who achieved chart success with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly in his sleep at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in Henley-on-Thames.
Recent Health Challenges
During that performance, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a period of ill-health.
"I managed to damage myself significantly," he stated in a recent interview. "I fractured spinal bones in my spine and fractured about five ribs and fractured my arm."
Following contracting pneumonia and developing blood poisoning, he was placed in an induced coma and stayed in the hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" over the summer, as he was developing a new album with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is scheduled for release next year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the latest project that we actually completed only a few days ago," stated the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's so sad as next year was all set to be such an uplifting time for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he heard the completed album and felt that it was a great piece of work."
Tributes
Almond described his bandmate as "an exceptionally talented musical genius", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our body of work.
"Many thanks Dave for being an immense part of my existence and for the songs you created with me. I couldn't be where I am without you."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a duo with someone is different from being in a band, the bond is very tight," he continued.
"That was the case with us. We went through so many extraordinary, extraordinary, memorable experiences as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Early Life
Born into a single-parent household in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half of age.
He was raised in Blackpool with adoptive parents his caregivers, who altered his first name from Paul to David, alongside his younger sister Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both studying art. Inspired by a shared love of Northern Soul, they established Soft Cell the very year, and quickly produced an extended play.
Creative Collaboration
The pair were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the quiet technician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they achieved a rare musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with synthesizers after viewing Kraftwerk appear on BBC science show a popular series, and started to marry dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second most popular single of the early 80s, selling millions of units globally. Together with successful tracks by other artists, Human League and electronic acts, it contributed to paved the path for the synth-pop sound of the 80s.
The song was also featured on their first album, their initial LP, which spawned two further top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the separate release, Torch, which peaked at number two in the following year.
Professional Journey
Success had its upsides. "I loved being able to afford my first home, having money and exploring, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago told with a publication.
But it also presented challenges. "Newfound wealth allowed we could afford newfound drugs to alleviate the boredom" of media interviews and television shows, Ball explained.
"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a good reason, because it applies for so many bands."
Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also growing distant, but they managed to produce a follow-up classic album - the wayward, tense and fittingly named 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 proceeded to have a successful individual path, featuring the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed dance music with melodic sounds over a enduring partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, releasing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another break, they reappeared in 2018, 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 large venue on 30 September, that year.
Yet, they remained together, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.
Ball lately characterized the duo's upcoming release as a tribute to the NYC nightlife they frequented while recording their first two albums.
He noted that his time in hospital had shaped the group's music.
"I had strange recollections when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on morphine," he told a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the sounds in my mind from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times we got up to in the 1980s."
The last versions were completed only a short time before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for launch in Spring 2026.
