Dave Ball, one half of the groundbreaking 1980s synth-pop duo Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Alongside singer Marc Almond, the pair achieved a worldwide hit with their version of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a classic of synth-pop.
He later founded the pioneering techno group The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball died calmly in his rest at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, 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
At that performance, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a spate of health issues.
"I managed to injure myself significantly," he stated in 2023. "I fractured spinal bones in my back and cracked about five ribs and broke my arm."
Following catching a lung infection and suffering from blood poisoning, he was put in an induced coma and stayed in hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" over the summer, as he was developing a fresh record with Almond, called Danceteria, which is set for release in the coming year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we actually completed only a short time ago," stated the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's so sad as next year was completely planned to be such an positive time for him, and I find comfort from the knowledge that he heard the completed album and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond referred to his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant 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 significant aspect of my life and for the songs you gave me. I wouldn't be where I am without your influence."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".
"Being in a partnership with someone is distinct from joining a band, the connection is very tight," he continued.
"That was the case with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences together. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in 1959, 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 changed his given name from Paul to his adopted name, together with his sibling Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both studying fine arts. Fuelled by a mutual passion of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the same year, and promptly recorded an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The duo were an unusual pairing: Ball was the quiet technician, hunched over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all sparkle and makeup; but they achieved a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had developed a fascination with electronic instruments after viewing the band Kraftwerk perform on a television science show a popular series, and began to combine dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second most popular single of the early 80s, selling 21 million units globally. Together with hits by Gary Numan, Human League and electronic acts, 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 stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at the second position in 1982.
Career Highlights
Fame had its benefits. "I loved being able to afford my initial property, having money and travelling, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago told with a music magazine.
But it also presented problems. "Newfound wealth allowed we could afford newfound drugs to relieve the boredom" of press appearances and television shows, Ball said.
"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it applies for so many bands."
Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the pair were also growing distant, but they managed to produce a second classic album - the unconventional, edgy and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more LP, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the group to focus on other projects.
Almond proceeded to have a prosperous individual path, including the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who combined acid house with melodic sounds over a enduring partnership.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, producing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another break, they returned in recent years, releasing 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.
Yet, they stayed active, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball recently characterized the band's new album as a tribute to the New York club scene they frequented while making their initial records.
He added that his time in medical care had influenced the band's sound.
"I had unusual memories when I was in and out of the hospital because I was on pain medication," he explained to a music magazine.
"The new songs are a electronic representation of the sounds in my mind from that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times we had in the 1980s."
The last versions were completed only days before Ball died. It is due for launch in the spring of 2026.
