🔗 Share this article

Dave Ball, a key member of the pioneering 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.

Alongside singer Marc Almond, the team scored a worldwide hit with their version of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in 1984, and their first record their initial full-length release is regarded as a seminal work of electronic music.

He later formed the innovative techno group The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.

Ball passed away peacefully in his rest at his home in London on October 22, only a short time after performing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.

Recent Health Challenges

During that performance, Ball appeared 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 2023. "I broke spinal bones in my spine and fractured about multiple ribs and fractured my wrist."

Following contracting pneumonia and developing blood poisoning, he was placed in an induced coma and stayed in hospital for seven months.

Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits mentally" during the summer, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, called Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication next year.

"He was focused and very pleased with the latest project that we literally finished only a few days ago," stated the singer in a tribute.

"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was completely planned to be such an uplifting time for him, and I find comfort from the knowledge that he listened to the completed album and felt that it was a masterpiece."

Tributes

Almond described his bandmate as "an exceptionally talented musical genius", adding: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our legacy.

"Thank you Dave for being an significant aspect of my life and for the music you gave me. I couldn't be where I am without you."

Richard Norris from The Grid, shared his condolences, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".

"Being in a duo with someone is distinct from being in a band, the bond is very tight," he continued.

"That was the case with us. We went through so many extraordinary, incredible, memorable moments together. Many thanks, Dave."

Early Life

Born into a single-parent household in Chester in 1959, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months of age.

He was raised in Blackpool with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who altered his given name from Paul to David, together with his younger sister Susan, who was similarly welcomed.

He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both learning art. Fuelled by a shared love of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and quickly recorded an extended play.

Musical Partnership

The pair were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the quiet musician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all sparkle and makeup; but they achieved a unique musical alchemy.

Ball had developed a interest with electronic instruments after viewing the band Kraftwerk appear on a television program a popular series, and started to marry moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.

Their signature song became the UK's second biggest-selling song of the early 80s, shifting 21 million units worldwide. Together with hits by other artists, Human League and electronic acts, it contributed to cleared the path for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.

The song was also featured on their full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two additional high-charting 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 purchase my initial property, having money and travelling, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball not long ago told with a publication.

But it also presented problems. "Sudden riches allowed we could purchase newfound drugs to alleviate the monotony" of media interviews and television shows, Ball explained.

"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it works 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 unconventional, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.

They put out one more LP, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the group to focus on individual endeavors.

Almond proceeded to have a successful solo career, featuring the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed acid house with melodic sounds over a enduring partnership.

Reunions and Final Projects

Soft Cell reunited in 2001, releasing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.

Following a further hiatus, they reappeared in recent years, releasing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was intended to be a farewell show at the O2 Arena on September 30, that year.

Yet, they remained active, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.

Ball lately described the duo's upcoming release as a tribute to the New York club scene they frequented while recording their initial records.

He added that his time in hospital had shaped the group's music.

"I experienced strange recollections when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on pain medication," he told a publication.

"The new songs are a digital reflection of the sounds in my head from those days.

"In parallel, it's about the experiences we 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.