Dave Ball, one half of the innovative 1980s synth-pop duo Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Alongside singer Marc Almond, the team achieved a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in 1984, and their debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a classic of electronic music.
He later formed the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who secured chart success with their 1994 single the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball died calmly in his rest at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Recent Health Challenges
During that show, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, following a period of ill-health.
"I ended up injure myself quite a bit," he commented in 2023. "I broke lower vertebrae in my spine and fractured about multiple ribs and fractured my arm."
After catching a lung infection and developing sepsis, he was placed in an induced coma and stayed in hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "a great place emotionally" over the warmer months, as he was developing a new album with Almond, called Danceteria, which is set for publication next year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we literally finished only a short time ago," said the vocalist in a heartfelt message.
"It's truly heartbreaking 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 felt that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond described his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our legacy.
"Many thanks Dave for being an immense aspect of my existence and for the songs you created with me. I couldn't be where I am without you."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".
"Being in a duo with someone is distinct from joining a group, the bond is incredibly close," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many extraordinary, extraordinary, memorable experiences as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Born into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in 1959, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months old.
He grew up in the seaside town with his new family his caregivers, who altered his first name from Paul to his adopted name, alongside his sibling his sister, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at an art college in the late 70s, where they were both learning art. Inspired by a shared love of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and quickly produced an EP.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the quiet technician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they attained a unique creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with electronic instruments after watching Kraftwerk perform on a television program Tomorrow's World, and began to combine dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second most popular song of the early 80s, selling 21 million units globally. Together with successful tracks by other artists, Human League and electronic acts, it contributed to paved the way for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The track was also featured on their first album, 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 peaked at number two in 1982.
Career Highlights
Fame had its upsides. "I loved being able to afford my first home, having financial security and travelling, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball recently told with a publication.
But it also presented challenges. "Newfound wealth meant we could purchase newfound drugs to relieve the boredom" of media interviews and television shows, Ball explained.
"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it applies for so many musicians."
During the party-filled existence, the duo were also drifting apart, but they managed to create a second classic album - the wayward, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to focus on other projects.
Almond went on to have a successful solo career, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who combined dance music with melodic sounds over a long-lasting partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, producing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
After another hiatus, they reappeared 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 large venue on September 30, 2018.
However, they remained together, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball recently characterized the duo's upcoming release as a tribute to the NYC nightlife they visited while making their first two albums.
He added that his period in medical care had influenced the group's music.
"I had strange recollections when I was in and out of hospital because I was on pain medication," he told a music magazine.
"The new songs are a electronic representation of the sounds in my head from that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences me and Marc had in the 1980s."
The last versions were finished only days before Ball passed away. It is due for launch in Spring 2026.
