Dave Ball, one half of the innovative 1980s synth-pop duo Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with singer Marc Almond, the team scored a worldwide hit with their version of Gloria Jones' the classic track 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 achieved chart success with their 1994 single the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball died calmly in his rest at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in the Thames-side town.
Recent Health Challenges
During that performance, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, after a period of ill-health.
"I ended up injure myself quite a bit," he stated in 2023. "I broke lower vertebrae in my back and cracked about multiple ribs and broke my arm."
Following contracting a lung infection and developing sepsis, he was put in an induced coma and stayed in the hospital for seven months.
Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place emotionally" during the summer, as he was developing a new album with Almond, called Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication next year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the latest project that we actually completed only a short time ago," stated the singer in a heartfelt message.
"It's so sad as next year was completely planned to be such an positive time for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he listened to the finished record and believed that it was a masterpiece."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond described 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 legacy.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense part of my existence and for the songs you gave me. I wouldn't be where I am without your influence."
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 band, the connection is incredibly close," he added.
"That was the case with us. We went through so many extraordinary, incredible, memorable experiences together. Many thanks, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in the city of Chester in the late 50s, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months old.
He grew up in Blackpool with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who altered his given name from his birth name to his adopted name, together with his sibling Susan, who was also adopted.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both learning art. Fuelled by a shared love of Northern Soul, they established Soft Cell the very year, and promptly recorded an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The duo were an unusual combination: Ball was the quiet technician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a flamboyant showman, all glitter and eye-liner; but they achieved a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with electronic instruments after watching Kraftwerk appear on BBC program Tomorrow's World, and began to marry moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second most popular single of 1981, shifting 21 million copies worldwide. Alongside successful tracks by Gary Numan, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it contributed to paved the way for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The track was also included on their full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two additional top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the record up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at number two in the following year.
Professional Journey
Fame had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to afford my initial property, having money and exploring, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball recently told with a music magazine.
But it also presented problems. "Sudden riches meant we could afford newfound drugs to alleviate the monotony" of press appearances and television shows, Ball said.
"I know that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it applies for so many musicians."
During the party-filled existence, the pair were also growing distant, but they succeeded to produce a second memorable record - the wayward, edgy and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more album, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to focus on other projects.
Almond proceeded to have a successful individual path, including the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who mixed dance music with ambient pop over a long-lasting partnership.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, producing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
After another hiatus, they returned in 2018, 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 30 September, 2018.
Yet, they stayed active, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball recently characterized the duo's upcoming release as a homage to the New York club scene they frequented while making their first two albums.
He added that his period in hospital had shaped the band's sound.
"I experienced unusual memories when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a music magazine.
"The new songs are a digital reflection of the sounds in my mind from those days.
"In parallel, it's about the times me and Marc had in the 1980s."
The last versions were completed only a short time before Ball died. It is due for launch in the spring of 2026.
