Dave Ball, one half of the innovative 1980s synth-pop band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with singer Marc Almond, the duo scored a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record their initial full-length release is considered a classic of electronic music.
He subsequently formed the pioneering techno group The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with their 1994 single the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly in his sleep at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after performing a headline show 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 managed to injure myself quite a bit," he stated in 2023. "I broke lower vertebrae in my spine and cracked about multiple ribs and fractured my wrist."
After contracting a lung infection and developing blood poisoning, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in the hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" during the warmer months, as he was developing a new album 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 actually completed only a few days ago," stated the singer in a tribute.
"It's so sad as next year was all set to be such an positive time for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he listened to the completed album and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Tributes
Almond described his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", stating: "He was the core essence 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 songs you created with me. I couldn't be where I am without you."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Being in a partnership with someone is distinct from being in a band, the connection is incredibly close," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many remarkable, incredible, memorable experiences as a team. Many thanks, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world 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 Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his given name from Paul to David, together with his sibling his sister, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at an art college in the late 70s, where they were both studying art. Inspired by a mutual passion of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and quickly recorded an EP.
Musical Partnership
The duo were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the quiet technician, hunched over his synthesizer, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they attained a rare creative synergy.
Ball had developed a fascination with synthesizers after viewing Kraftwerk perform on a television program a popular series, and started to combine moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Their signature song became the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling single of 1981, shifting 21 million copies worldwide. Alongside hits by other artists, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it helped paved the way for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The song was also featured on their first album, their initial LP, which produced two further top five hits: 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.
Professional Journey
Success had its upsides. "I loved being able to afford my first home, having financial security and travelling, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball recently shared with a music magazine.
But it also caused problems. "Newfound wealth allowed we could afford substances to relieve the boredom" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball said.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a truism for a good reason, because it applies for so many bands."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also growing distant, but they managed to create a second memorable record - the unconventional, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out one more LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to focus on individual endeavors.
Almond went on to have a prosperous solo career, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who mixed acid house with ambient pop over a long-lasting partnership.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, producing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
After another hiatus, they reappeared in 2018, issuing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was supposed to be a farewell show at the O2 Arena on September 30, that year.
However, they stayed together, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball recently characterized the duo's new album as a homage to the NYC nightlife they visited while recording their initial records.
He added that his time in hospital had shaped the group's music.
"I had unusual memories when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to 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 times we got up to in the 80s."
The final mixes were finished only days before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for release in the spring of 2026.
