Dave Ball, one half of the pioneering 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with singer Marc Almond, the pair achieved a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a classic of synth-pop.
He subsequently founded the innovative techno group The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with their 1994 single the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball died calmly in his rest at his home in London on October 22, only a short time after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Recent Health Challenges
During that show, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the previous couple of years, following a spate of ill-health.
"I managed to damage myself quite a bit," he stated in a recent interview. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my spine and cracked about multiple ribs and fractured my arm."
After catching pneumonia and suffering from blood poisoning, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and remained in hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" during the warmer months, as he was developing a new album with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is scheduled for release next year.
"He was focused and so happy with the new album that we literally finished only a few days ago," said the singer in a heartfelt message.
"It's so sad as 2026 was completely planned to be such an positive year for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he heard the finished record and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Tributes
Almond described his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", adding: "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 part of my life and for the songs you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without you."
Richard Norris from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a duo with someone is distinct from being in a band, the connection is very tight," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many extraordinary, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in the city of Chester in the late 50s, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months of age.
He grew up in Blackpool with his new family his caregivers, who changed his given name from Paul to his adopted name, alongside his younger sister Susan, who was also adopted.
He met Almond at an art college in the late 70s, where they were both studying art. Fuelled by a mutual passion of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and quickly recorded an extended play.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an unusual combination: Ball was the quiet technician, hunched over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they achieved a rare musical alchemy.
Ball had developed a fascination with electronic instruments after viewing the band Kraftwerk appear on a television science show a popular series, and began to marry 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 21 million copies worldwide. Alongside hits by Gary Numan, Human League and electronic acts, it contributed to cleared the way for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The track was also featured on their full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two further top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at the second position in the following year.
Career Highlights
Fame had its benefits. "I loved being able to afford my first home, having financial security and exploring, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball not long ago shared with a publication.
But it also caused challenges. "Newfound wealth allowed we could purchase substances to relieve the monotony" of press appearances and television shows, Ball said.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it works for so many bands."
Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also growing distant, but they managed to create a second memorable record - the wayward, edgy and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more LP, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to focus on individual endeavors.
Almond went on to have a successful solo career, including the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed acid house with melodic sounds over a enduring partnership.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell came back together in 2001, releasing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further break, they reappeared in recent years, 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 30 September, 2018.
However, they stayed together, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball recently described the duo's upcoming release as a tribute to the New York club scene they frequented while making their initial records.
He noted that his time in medical care had influenced the group's music.
"I had strange recollections when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a music magazine.
"The new songs are a digital reflection of the sounds in my head from that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences me and Marc had in the 1980s."
The final mixes were finished only days before Ball died. It is scheduled for release in the spring of 2026.
