Dave Ball, one half of the pioneering 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the duo 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 seminal work of electronic music.
He later formed the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball died peacefully in his rest at his residence in London on October 22, only a short time after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
During that show, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, after a spate of ill-health.
"I ended up damage myself significantly," he stated in 2023. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my spine and fractured about multiple ribs and broke my arm."
Following contracting pneumonia and developing sepsis, he was put in an induced coma and remained in the hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" during the warmer months, as he worked on a new album with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication in the coming year.
"He was concentrated and very pleased with the latest project that we literally finished only a few days ago," said the singer in a tribute.
"It's so sad as next year was all set to be such an uplifting time for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he heard the finished record and believed that it was a masterpiece."
Tributes
Almond described his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", adding: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our body of work.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense aspect of my life and for the music you gave me. I wouldn't be where I am without you."
Richard Norris from The Grid, also paid tribute, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a duo 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 moments as a team. Thank you, 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 of age.
He grew up in Blackpool with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his first name from his birth name to his adopted name, alongside his sibling his sister, who was also adopted.
He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both learning art. Inspired by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and quickly recorded an extended play.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an unusual combination: Ball was the reserved technician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all glitter and eye-liner; but they attained a rare musical alchemy.
Ball had developed a interest with electronic instruments after watching Kraftwerk perform on BBC science show a popular series, and started to combine moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Their signature song became the UK's second biggest-selling song of 1981, selling 21 million copies globally. Alongside hits by other artists, Human League and electronic acts, it helped paved the path for the synth-pop sound of the 80s.
The song was also included on their first album, their initial LP, which produced two further high-charting hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at the second position in 1982.
Career Highlights
Success had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to afford my first home, having financial security and exploring, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball recently shared with a publication.
But it also caused problems. "Sudden riches allowed we could afford newfound drugs to alleviate the monotony" of media interviews and television shows, Ball said.
"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it applies for so many musicians."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also drifting apart, but they succeeded to create a second memorable record - the unconventional, edgy and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to focus on individual endeavors.
Almond proceeded to have a successful solo career, featuring 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 reunited in the early 2000s, releasing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another break, they returned in recent years, issuing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was supposed to be a final performance at the large venue on 30 September, 2018.
Yet, they stayed together, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball recently characterized the duo's new album as a homage to the NYC nightlife they frequented while recording their initial records.
He added that his time in medical care had influenced the band's sound.
"I had strange recollections when I was in and out of the hospital because I was on morphine," he told a music magazine.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the sounds in my mind from that time.
"In parallel, it's about the experiences we got up to in the 80s."
The final mixes were finished only days before Ball died. It is scheduled for release in the spring of 2026.
