Dave Ball, a key member of the pioneering 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with singer Marc Almond, the duo scored a global success with their version of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a classic of electronic music.
He later founded the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball died calmly in his rest at his home in London on October 22, just weeks after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in Henley-on-Thames.
Recent Health Challenges
During that show, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a spate of ill-health.
"I ended up injure myself significantly," he stated in a recent interview. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my back and fractured about multiple ribs and fractured my arm."
After catching a lung infection and developing sepsis, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and remained in 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, called Danceteria, which is scheduled for release next year.
"He was concentrated and so happy with the new album that we actually finished only a short time ago," said the singer 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 great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond referred to his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our legacy.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense aspect of my existence and for the music you created with me. I couldn't be where I am without you."
Richard Norris from The Grid, shared his condolences, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Being in a partnership with someone is distinct from being in a group, the connection is incredibly close," he continued.
"That was the case with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, memorable experiences together. Many thanks, Dave."
Early Life
Born into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in 1959, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half old.
He grew up in Blackpool with his new family his caregivers, who changed his given name from Paul to David, alongside his younger sister his sister, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both studying art. Fuelled by a shared love of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and promptly produced an EP.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the quiet musician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they achieved a rare musical alchemy.
Ball had developed a interest with electronic instruments after viewing Kraftwerk appear on a television program a popular series, and started to marry dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Their signature song became the UK's second biggest-selling song of 1981, selling 21 million units globally. Together with successful tracks by Gary Numan, Human League and Ultravox, it helped paved the way for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The song was also featured on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which spawned two additional top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at the second position in the following year.
Career Highlights
Fame had its benefits. "I loved being able to purchase 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 caused problems. "Newfound wealth allowed we could purchase newfound drugs to alleviate the monotony" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball said.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it works for so many bands."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, 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 released another album, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to focus on individual endeavors.
Almond went on to have a prosperous 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 ambient pop over a enduring collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, releasing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further break, they returned in recent years, issuing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was intended to be a farewell show at the O2 Arena on 30 September, 2018.
However, they remained active, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball lately characterized the band's new album as a homage to the New York club scene they visited while making their first two albums.
He noted that his period in hospital had influenced the group's music.
"I experienced strange recollections when I was in and out of the hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a music magazine.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the noises in my head from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences me and Marc had in the 80s."
The final mixes were completed only a short time before Ball passed away. It is due for launch in Spring 2026.
