Dave Ball, one half of the groundbreaking 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with singer Marc Almond, the team scored a global success with their cover 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 subsequently founded the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who achieved chart success with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully in his sleep at his residence in London on October 22, only a short time after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in the Thames-side town.
Health Struggles
At that show, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the previous couple of years, following a period of health issues.
"I ended up damage myself quite a bit," he stated in a recent interview. "I broke lower vertebrae in my spine and cracked about five ribs and fractured my arm."
Following catching pneumonia and suffering from sepsis, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and remained in the hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "a great place emotionally" over the warmer months, as he was developing a new album with Almond, called Danceteria, which is set for release in the coming year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the latest project that we literally completed only a few days ago," stated the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's so sad as next year was completely planned to be such an uplifting time for him, and I find comfort from the fact that he listened to the finished record and felt that it was a masterpiece."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond referred to his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", stating: "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 music 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 "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".
"Being in a partnership with someone is distinct from being in a band, the connection is very tight," he added.
"That was the case with us. We went through so many extraordinary, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences together. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was a year and a half of age.
He was raised in the seaside town with adoptive parents Donald and Brenda Ball, who altered his first name from his birth name to David, alongside his sibling Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both studying art. Fuelled by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and promptly produced an extended play.
Musical Partnership
The duo were an unusual combination: Ball was the reserved technician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all glitter and makeup; but they attained a rare creative synergy.
Ball had developed a fascination with electronic instruments after viewing the band Kraftwerk appear on BBC science show a popular series, and started to marry dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Their signature song became the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling single of 1981, selling millions of units globally. Together with successful tracks by other artists, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it helped cleared the way for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The track was also included on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which spawned two further top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the record up with the separate release, Torch, which peaked at the second position in the following year.
Career Highlights
Fame had its upsides. "I loved being able to afford my first home, having financial security and exploring, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball recently told with a music magazine.
But it also presented problems. "Newfound wealth meant we could purchase substances to relieve the boredom" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a truism for a good reason, because it works for so many bands."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, the pair were also growing distant, but they managed to produce a second classic album - the unconventional, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out another LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the group to focus on other projects.
Almond went on to have a prosperous individual path, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed acid house with melodic sounds over a enduring collaboration.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell came back together in 2001, producing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
After a further hiatus, they returned in recent years, releasing the new tracks 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.
However, they stayed active, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball lately described the band'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 had unusual memories when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the sounds in my mind from those days.
"In parallel, it's about the times me and Marc got up to in the 1980s."
The final mixes were finished only a short time before Ball died. It is due for release in the spring of 2026.
