Dave Ball, one half of the innovative 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Alongside singer Marc Almond, the team scored a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in 1984, and their debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a seminal work of electronic music.
He later founded the pioneering techno group The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball died calmly in his sleep at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in Henley-on-Thames.
Recent Health Challenges
During that show, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, following a period of health issues.
"I managed to damage myself quite a bit," he commented in 2023. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my spine and cracked about five ribs and broke my wrist."
Following catching pneumonia and suffering from blood poisoning, he was put in an induced coma and stayed in the hospital for half a year.
Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place mentally" over the summer, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for release next year.
"He was concentrated and so happy with the new album that we literally completed only a few days ago," said 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 take some solace from the fact that he listened to the finished record and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Tributes
Almond described his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", adding: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.
"Many thanks Dave for being an immense part of my life and for the music 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 "steadfast support".
"Forming a partnership with someone is different from being in a group, the bond is very tight," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many extraordinary, incredible, memorable moments as a team. Many thanks, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half of age.
He grew up in Blackpool with adoptive parents his caregivers, who altered his given name from his birth name to his adopted name, alongside his younger sister Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both learning fine arts. Fuelled by a shared love of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and quickly produced an EP.
Musical Partnership
The duo were an unusual combination: Ball was the reserved musician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all glitter and eye-liner; but they attained a rare musical alchemy.
Ball had developed a fascination with synthesizers after watching the band Kraftwerk perform on a television program Tomorrow's World, and started to combine moody electronic sounds to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.
Their signature song became the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling song of the early 80s, shifting millions of copies worldwide. Together with hits by other artists, Human League and electronic acts, it helped paved the path for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The track was also featured on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two further high-charting singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at the second position in the following year.
Career Highlights
Success had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to afford my first home, having money and exploring, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago shared with a music magazine.
But it also caused problems. "Sudden riches allowed we could purchase substances to relieve the boredom" of media interviews and television shows, Ball explained.
"I know that's a common saying, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it applies for so many bands."
During the party-filled existence, the duo were also growing distant, but they managed to produce a second memorable record - the wayward, edgy and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released another album, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to concentrate on individual endeavors.
Almond proceeded 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 mixed dance music with melodic sounds over a enduring partnership.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell came back together in 2001, releasing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
After a further hiatus, 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 September 30, 2018.
Yet, they stayed together, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.
Ball lately characterized the band's upcoming release as a tribute to the New York club scene they frequented while making their initial records.
He noted that his period in medical care had influenced the band's sound.
"I had unusual memories when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on morphine," he told a publication.
"The new songs are a electronic representation of the sounds in my head from those days.
"In parallel, it's about the experiences we got up to in the 1980s."
The last versions were completed only a short time before Ball passed away. It is due for release in the spring of 2026.
