Dave Ball, one half of the innovative 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the team scored a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a seminal work of electronic music.
He subsequently formed the pioneering techno group The Grid, who secured popular acclaim 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 playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.
Health Struggles
During that show, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the previous couple of years, following a spate of ill-health.
"I ended up damage myself significantly," he commented in 2023. "I broke lower vertebrae in my spine and fractured about multiple ribs and broke my wrist."
Following contracting a lung infection and developing sepsis, he was placed in an induced coma and remained in hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "high spirits mentally" during the warmer months, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for publication next year.
"He was concentrated and so happy with the latest project 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 positive time for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he heard the completed album and felt that it was a masterpiece."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond described his collaborator 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 immense part of my existence and for the songs you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without your influence."
Richard Norris from The Grid, also paid tribute, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".
"Being in a partnership with someone is different from being in a group, the connection is very tight," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many remarkable, incredible, life-affirming moments as a team. Many thanks, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a single-parent household 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 adoptive parents Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his given name from Paul to David, alongside his sibling Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both studying fine arts. Inspired by a shared love of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and promptly produced an EP.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an unusual pairing: Ball was the reserved musician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they attained a rare creative synergy.
Ball had developed a fascination with electronic instruments after watching the band Kraftwerk appear on BBC program Tomorrow's World, and started to combine moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second biggest-selling single of the early 80s, selling 21 million copies worldwide. Alongside hits by Gary Numan, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it contributed to cleared the path for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The song was also included on their full-length debut, their initial LP, which produced two additional high-charting hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the record up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at the second position in 1982.
Career Highlights
Fame had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my first home, having financial security and travelling, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball not long ago told with a music magazine.
But it also caused challenges. "Newfound wealth allowed we could afford newfound drugs to relieve the monotony" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a cliché for a good reason, 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, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out one more album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to concentrate 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 created The Grid, who combined acid house 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 2018, 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 large venue on September 30, that year.
However, they remained active, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic restrictions.
Ball recently described the duo's upcoming release as a tribute to the New York club scene they visited while making their initial records.
He noted that his time in hospital had influenced the band's sound.
"I experienced unusual memories when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on pain medication," he explained to a publication.
"The new songs are a electronic representation of the noises in my head from that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times we had in the 1980s."
The final mixes were completed only days before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for launch in the spring of 2026.
