Dave Ball, one half of the groundbreaking 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the team achieved a global success 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 synth-pop.
He later formed the innovative electronic act The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully in his sleep at his home in London on October 22, just weeks after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in the Thames-side town.
Recent Health Challenges
At that show, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, following a spate of health issues.
"I managed to injure myself significantly," he commented in 2023. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my spine and cracked about five ribs and broke my arm."
After 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 "high spirits emotionally" over the warmer months, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication in the coming year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we literally completed only a short time ago," said the vocalist in a heartfelt message.
"It's so sad as next year was all set to be such an uplifting year for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he listened to the completed album and felt that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond described his bandmate as "an exceptionally talented musical genius", adding: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our legacy.
"Many thanks Dave for being an immense part of my existence and for the songs you created with me. I couldn't be where I am without your influence."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".
"Forming a partnership with someone is different from joining a band, the bond is very tight," he continued.
"That was the case with us. We experienced so many remarkable, incredible, memorable experiences together. Many thanks, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in 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 adoptive parents Donald and Brenda Ball, who altered his first name from Paul to David, alongside his sibling Susan, who was also adopted.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic 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 recorded an extended play.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an unusual combination: Ball was the reserved musician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all glitter and eye-liner; but they achieved a rare creative synergy.
Ball had developed a fascination with electronic instruments after viewing Kraftwerk perform on BBC program a popular series, and began to marry dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second most popular single of the early 80s, selling 21 million units globally. Alongside successful tracks by Gary Numan, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it contributed to paved the path for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The song 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 continued the album up with the separate release, Torch, which peaked at the second position in 1982.
Career Highlights
Success had its upsides. "I loved being able to afford my first home, having money and travelling, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball recently shared with a music magazine.
But it also presented problems. "Newfound wealth allowed we could purchase newfound drugs to alleviate the monotony" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a truism for a good reason, because it applies for so many musicians."
During the party-filled existence, the duo were also drifting apart, but they managed to produce a follow-up memorable record - the wayward, edgy and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released another LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to focus on individual endeavors.
Almond proceeded to have a successful individual path, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who mixed acid house with melodic sounds over a enduring collaboration.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, producing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further 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, that year.
Yet, they stayed active, creating 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 making their first two albums.
He added that his period in medical care had influenced the band's sound.
"I experienced unusual memories when I was in and out of the hospital because I was on pain medication," he told a publication.
"The new songs are a digital reflection of the noises in my head 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 passed away. It is scheduled for launch in the spring of 2026.
