Dave Ball, one half of the pioneering 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the team scored a worldwide hit with their version of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album their initial full-length release is regarded as a classic of electronic music.
He later founded the innovative electronic act The Grid, who secured chart success with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly in his rest at his home in London on October 22, only a short time after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
At that show, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, following a spate of health issues.
"I ended up injure myself significantly," he commented in 2023. "I broke lower vertebrae in my spine and cracked about five ribs and fractured my wrist."
After contracting pneumonia and developing blood poisoning, he was put in an induced coma and remained in the hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" over the warmer months, as he worked on a new album with Almond, called Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication next year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we actually finished 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 knowledge that he heard the completed album and believed that it was a masterpiece."
Tributes
Almond referred to his collaborator as "an exceptionally talented creative mastermind", adding: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.
"Many thanks Dave for being an immense aspect of my existence and for the songs you gave me. I couldn't be where I am without your influence."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a partnership with someone is different from joining a band, the connection is incredibly close," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences as a team. Many thanks, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months old.
He grew up in the seaside town with his new family his caregivers, who changed his first name from his birth name to David, alongside his younger sister Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both learning fine arts. Fuelled by a shared love of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the very year, and quickly recorded an extended play.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an unusual combination: Ball was the quiet musician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all glitter and eye-liner; but they achieved a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with electronic instruments after viewing Kraftwerk perform on a television science show a popular series, and started to combine dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second most popular single of the early 80s, selling 21 million units worldwide. Together with successful tracks by Gary Numan, Human League and electronic acts, it contributed to paved the way for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The track was also included on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which spawned two additional top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at the second position in the following year.
Professional Journey
Fame had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to afford my first home, having financial security and exploring, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago told with a music magazine.
But it also caused problems. "Sudden riches allowed we could afford newfound drugs to relieve the boredom" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I know that's a common saying, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it works for so many bands."
Amidst the party-filled existence, the pair were also drifting apart, but they managed to create a follow-up memorable record - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out one more LP, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to focus on individual endeavors.
Almond proceeded 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 acid house with melodic sounds over a long-lasting collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell came back together in 2001, producing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another break, they returned in 2018, issuing the original singles 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, that year.
However, they remained together, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.
Ball recently described the duo's upcoming release as a tribute to the NYC nightlife they frequented while making their initial records.
He noted that his time in hospital had influenced the group's music.
"I had strange recollections when I was in and out of the hospital because I was on pain medication," he told a music magazine.
"The new songs are a digital reflection of the sounds in my mind from that time.
"In parallel, it's about the times we had in the 80s."
The final mixes were completed only days before Ball died. It is due for release in Spring 2026.
