Dave Ball, one half of the pioneering 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the team scored a global success with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a classic of synth-pop.
He later formed the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who secured chart success with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly in his rest at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in the Thames-side town.
Recent Health Challenges
During that performance, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a spate of health issues.
"I ended up damage myself significantly," he commented in a recent interview. "I broke lower vertebrae in my back and fractured about five ribs and broke my arm."
After contracting pneumonia and developing sepsis, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and remained in hospital for half a year.
Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" during the warmer months, as he worked on a new album with Almond, called Danceteria, which is scheduled for release next year.
"He was concentrated and very pleased with the latest project that we actually finished only a short time ago," stated the singer in a tribute.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was completely planned to be such an positive time for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he heard the completed album and felt that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond referred to his bandmate as "an exceptionally talented musical genius", adding: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our legacy.
"Many thanks Dave for being an immense part of my existence and for the music you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without you."
Richard Norris from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a duo with someone is different from joining a band, the connection is very tight," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many extraordinary, incredible, life-affirming experiences together. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Born into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in the late 50s, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months of age.
He was raised in Blackpool with his new family his caregivers, who altered his first name from Paul to his adopted name, alongside his younger sister Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both learning art. Inspired by a mutual passion of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the very year, and promptly produced an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The duo were an distinctive combination: 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 interest with electronic instruments after viewing the band Kraftwerk perform on BBC science show Tomorrow's World, and began to marry moody electronic sounds to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.
Their signature song became the United Kingdom's second most popular song of the early 80s, selling 21 million units globally. Together with hits by other artists, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it helped paved the path for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The song was also featured on their full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two further high-charting hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the album up with the separate release, Torch, which peaked at the second position in the following year.
Professional Journey
Fame had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my first home, having financial security and exploring, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball recently shared with a publication.
But it also presented problems. "Sudden riches meant we could afford substances to relieve the monotony" of press appearances and television shows, Ball explained.
"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it applies for so many musicians."
During the party-filled existence, the duo were also growing distant, but they succeeded to produce a second memorable record - the wayward, edgy and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the group to concentrate on other projects.
Almond went on to have a prosperous 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 enduring collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, releasing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further hiatus, they returned in 2018, releasing the original singles 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 remained active, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball lately described the band's new album as a tribute to the NYC nightlife they visited while recording their first two albums.
He added that his period in hospital had influenced the group's music.
"I experienced unusual memories when I was in and out of hospital because I was on morphine," he told a music magazine.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the noises in my head from that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences me and Marc got up to in the 1980s."
The final mixes were finished only days before Ball died. It is due for launch in Spring 2026.
