Dave Ball, a key member of the innovative 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the duo scored a global success with their version of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in 1984, and their debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a classic of electronic music.
He later founded the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly 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
At that show, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, following a period of health issues.
"I managed to damage myself significantly," he commented in a recent interview. "I broke lower vertebrae in my back and cracked about five ribs and broke my wrist."
Following catching a lung infection and developing sepsis, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in the hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "a great place mentally" during the warmer months, as he worked on a new album with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication next year.
"He was concentrated and very pleased with the new album that we actually finished only a few days ago," said the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's so sad as next year was all set to be such an positive time for him, and I find comfort from the knowledge that he heard the finished record and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond described his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", adding: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our legacy.
"Many thanks Dave for being an immense part of my existence 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, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a duo with someone is different from joining a group, the bond is incredibly close," he added.
"That was the case with us. We went through so many extraordinary, incredible, life-affirming moments as a team. Many thanks, Dave."
Formative Years
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 the seaside town with adoptive parents Donald and Brenda Ball, who altered his given name from his birth name to David, together with his younger sister Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both studying fine arts. Fuelled by a shared love of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and promptly recorded an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The pair were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the reserved musician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant showman, all glitter and eye-liner; but they achieved a rare creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a interest with electronic instruments after viewing Kraftwerk appear on BBC program Tomorrow's World, and started to combine moody electronic sounds to the catchy tunes Almond was writing.
Their signature song became the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling song of the early 80s, shifting millions of copies globally. Alongside hits by other artists, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it contributed to cleared the way for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The track was also featured on their full-length debut, their initial LP, which produced two additional high-charting singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at the second position in the following year.
Professional Journey
Fame had its upsides. "I loved being able to afford my initial property, having financial security and travelling, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball recently told with a music magazine.
But it also presented problems. "Sudden riches allowed we could purchase newfound drugs to alleviate the boredom" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball said.
"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it works for so many bands."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also drifting apart, 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 other projects.
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 dance music with melodic sounds over a enduring partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, releasing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
After a further break, they returned in 2018, releasing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was supposed to be a farewell show at the large venue on September 30, 2018.
Yet, they remained together, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball lately characterized the duo's new album as a homage to the New York club scene they visited while making their initial records.
He added that his period in medical care had influenced the group's music.
"I experienced unusual memories when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on morphine," he told a music magazine.
"The new songs are a digital reflection of the sounds in my head from those days.
"In parallel, it's about the experiences me and Marc had in the 1980s."
The last versions were completed only a short time before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for launch in the spring of 2026.
