Dave Ball, one half of the groundbreaking 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the team achieved a worldwide hit with their version of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in 1984, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a classic of synth-pop.
He later formed the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball died calmly in his sleep at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
During that show, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, following a spate of health issues.
"I managed to injure myself quite a bit," he stated in a recent interview. "I broke lower vertebrae in my spine and fractured about multiple ribs and broke my arm."
After contracting pneumonia and suffering from sepsis, he was put in an induced coma and remained in hospital for seven months.
Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" over the warmer months, as he worked on a new album with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication next year.
"He was focused and so happy with the latest project that we literally finished only a short time ago," said the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's so sad as next year was completely planned to be such an uplifting time for him, and I find comfort from the knowledge that he heard the finished record and felt that it was a great piece of work."
Tributes
Almond referred to his bandmate as "an exceptionally talented creative mastermind", adding: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our legacy.
"Many thanks Dave for being an immense part of my existence and for the songs you gave me. I couldn't be where I am without your influence."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".
"Forming a duo with someone is different from joining a group, the bond is incredibly close," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences together. Many thanks, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in the city of Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months of age.
He was raised in the seaside town with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his given name from his birth name to his adopted name, together with his sibling Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both studying art. Fuelled by a shared love of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the same year, and promptly produced an EP.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an distinctive combination: Ball was the quiet musician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a flamboyant showman, all sparkle and makeup; but they achieved a unique creative synergy.
Ball had developed a fascination with synthesizers after watching the band Kraftwerk perform on BBC science show a popular series, and began to marry dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second most popular song of the early 80s, selling millions of copies globally. Together with hits by other artists, Human League and Ultravox, it helped paved the path for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The track was also featured on their first album, their initial LP, 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 reached at the second position in the following year.
Career Highlights
Fame had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to afford my first home, having money and exploring, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball recently told with a publication.
But it also caused challenges. "Sudden riches allowed we could purchase substances to relieve the monotony" of press appearances and television shows, Ball explained.
"I know that's a common saying, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it works for so many musicians."
Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the pair were also drifting apart, but they managed to produce a second classic album - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to focus on other projects.
Almond went on to have a prosperous solo career, including the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed dance music with melodic sounds over a enduring collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, producing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
After a further break, they reappeared in 2018, releasing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was intended to be a farewell show at the O2 Arena on 30 September, that year.
However, they stayed together, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic restrictions.
Ball lately characterized the duo's upcoming release as a homage to the NYC nightlife they frequented while recording their initial records.
He noted that his time in hospital had influenced the band's sound.
"I had strange recollections when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the noises in my head from those days.
"In parallel, it's about the experiences me and Marc got up to in the 1980s."
The last versions were finished only days before Ball died. It is due for release in the spring of 2026.
