Dave Ball, one half of the pioneering 1980s synth-pop duo Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the duo scored a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in 1984, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a classic of synth-pop.
He subsequently founded the pioneering techno group The Grid, who achieved chart success with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball died calmly in his sleep at his residence 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
At that performance, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a period of ill-health.
"I ended up damage myself significantly," he commented in 2023. "I broke spinal bones in my back and fractured about multiple ribs and broke my arm."
Following contracting pneumonia and developing blood poisoning, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and remained in the hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "high spirits mentally" over the warmer months, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is scheduled for release 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 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 fact that he listened to the completed album and believed that it was a masterpiece."
Tributes
Almond referred to his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our body of work.
"Many thanks Dave for being an significant aspect of my life and for the songs you created with me. I couldn't be where I am without you."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".
"Forming a duo with someone is different from joining a group, the bond is very tight," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many remarkable, extraordinary, memorable moments together. Thank you, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in the city of Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half old.
He grew up in the seaside town with adoptive parents Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his first name from his birth name to his adopted name, together with his sibling his sister, who was also adopted.
He encountered Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both studying fine arts. Fuelled by a mutual passion of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and quickly recorded an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The pair were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the reserved musician, hunched over his synthesizer, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all sparkle and makeup; but they attained a rare creative synergy.
Ball had developed a interest with synthesizers after viewing Kraftwerk appear on a television science show Tomorrow's World, and began to marry moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Their signature song became the UK's second most popular song of the early 80s, selling 21 million copies globally. Alongside hits by Gary Numan, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it contributed to cleared the path for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The track was also featured on their full-length debut, their initial LP, which spawned two further top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the album up with the separate release, Torch, which peaked at number two in 1982.
Professional Journey
Success had its upsides. "I loved being able to afford my initial property, having financial security and travelling, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago told with a publication.
But it also presented problems. "Sudden riches meant we could afford substances to relieve the boredom" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a truism for a good reason, because it works for so many bands."
Amidst the party-filled existence, the pair were also growing distant, but they managed to create a follow-up classic album - the wayward, edgy and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more album, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the group to focus on individual endeavors.
Almond went on to have a successful individual path, including the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who combined dance music with ambient pop over a long-lasting collaboration.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, releasing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another 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 final performance at the large venue on September 30, 2018.
However, they stayed together, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball recently described the band's new album as a tribute to the NYC nightlife they visited while recording their first two albums.
He noted that his period in medical care had shaped the group's music.
"I had strange recollections when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on pain medication," he told a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the sounds in my head from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times we got up to in the 80s."
The last versions were completed only days before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for launch in Spring 2026.
