Dave Ball, one half of the innovative 1980s synth-pop duo Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the pair achieved a worldwide hit with their version of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a classic of electronic music.
He subsequently formed the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who achieved chart success with their 1994 single the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully in his sleep at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, 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 performance, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a period of health issues.
"I managed to damage myself significantly," he commented in 2023. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my back and fractured about five ribs and fractured my arm."
Following catching pneumonia and developing sepsis, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and remained in hospital for half a year.
Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place mentally" during the warmer months, as he worked on a new album with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication next year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we actually finished only a short time ago," stated the vocalist in a heartfelt message.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was completely planned to be such an uplifting year for him, and I find comfort from the fact that he listened to the finished record and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond described his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", 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 significant part of my existence and for the music you gave me. I couldn't be where I am without your influence."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a duo with someone is different from joining a group, the connection is incredibly close," he added.
"That was the case with us. We went through so many extraordinary, extraordinary, memorable moments together. Thank you, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half of age.
He was raised in the seaside town with his new family his caregivers, who altered his first name from Paul to David, together with his sibling Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He encountered Almond at an art college in the late 70s, where they were both studying art. Fuelled by a shared love of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the same year, and quickly produced an EP.
Musical Partnership
The duo were an unusual pairing: Ball was the quiet musician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all sparkle and makeup; but they attained a rare musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with electronic instruments after watching Kraftwerk appear on a television science show Tomorrow's World, and started to combine dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second most popular song of the early 80s, selling millions of units globally. Together with hits by other artists, Human League and electronic acts, it contributed to paved the way for the synth-pop sound of the 80s.
The track was also included on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two further high-charting singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the record up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at number two in the following year.
Professional Journey
Fame had its benefits. "I loved being able to afford my first home, having money and exploring, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball recently told with a music magazine.
But it also caused problems. "Newfound wealth meant we could purchase substances to relieve the monotony" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it applies for so many bands."
Amidst the party-filled existence, the pair were also growing distant, but they succeeded to produce a second classic album - the unconventional, edgy and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released another album, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to concentrate 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 mixed acid house with ambient pop over a enduring collaboration.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, producing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
After a further hiatus, they returned in recent years, releasing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was intended to be a final performance at the O2 Arena on September 30, that year.
However, they remained together, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball lately characterized the band's new album as a homage to the NYC nightlife they frequented while recording their first two albums.
He added that his time in hospital had influenced the band's sound.
"I had strange recollections when I was in and out of hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a music magazine.
"The new songs are a electronic representation of the sounds in my mind from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences we got up to in the 1980s."
The final mixes were completed only days before Ball passed away. It is due for release in the spring of 2026.
