Dave Ball, one half of the groundbreaking 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with singer Marc Almond, the pair scored a global success with their version 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 synth-pop.
He subsequently formed the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who achieved chart success with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly in his sleep at his home in London on October 22, only a short time after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in the Thames-side town.
Recent Health Challenges
At that performance, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a period of ill-health.
"I ended up damage myself quite a bit," he stated in 2023. "I fractured spinal bones in my spine and cracked about multiple ribs and broke my wrist."
After contracting pneumonia and suffering from blood poisoning, he was put in an induced coma and stayed in hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "a great place emotionally" during the warmer months, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for release next year.
"He was concentrated and very pleased with the latest project that we actually completed only a few days ago," stated the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's so sad as 2026 was completely planned to be such an uplifting time for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he listened to the finished record and felt that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond described his bandmate 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 significant part of my existence and for the music you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without your influence."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".
"Forming a partnership with someone is distinct from being in a group, the bond is incredibly close," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many remarkable, incredible, life-affirming experiences together. Thank you, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months of age.
He was raised in the seaside town with his new family his caregivers, who altered his given name from Paul to his adopted name, together with his sibling Susan, who was also adopted.
He met Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both learning art. Inspired by a mutual passion of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and quickly produced an EP.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an unusual combination: Ball was the reserved technician, hunched over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all glitter and makeup; but they achieved a rare creative synergy.
Ball had developed a fascination with synthesizers after viewing the band Kraftwerk appear on BBC program Tomorrow's World, and began to marry dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling song of 1981, selling 21 million units worldwide. Alongside successful tracks by Gary Numan, Human League and Ultravox, it helped paved the path for the electronic music style of the 80s.
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 followed the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at number two in the following year.
Career Highlights
Fame had its benefits. "I loved being able to purchase my initial property, having financial security and travelling, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago told with a publication.
But it also caused problems. "Sudden riches meant we could afford newfound drugs to alleviate the monotony" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball said.
"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a truism for a good reason, because it works for so many musicians."
During the party-filled existence, the duo were also drifting apart, but they managed to create a follow-up memorable record - the unconventional, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out another LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to concentrate on individual endeavors.
Almond went on to have a prosperous individual path, including the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who combined dance music with ambient pop over a long-lasting collaboration.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, releasing the Top 40 record Cruelty Without Beauty.
After another hiatus, they returned in 2018, issuing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was supposed to be a final performance at the large venue on September 30, that year.
Yet, they stayed active, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball recently described the band's new album as a tribute to the New York club scene they visited while making their initial records.
He noted that his period in hospital had shaped the band's sound.
"I experienced strange recollections when I was in and out of the hospital because I was on morphine," he told a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the sounds in my head from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences we had in the 80s."
The last versions were completed only a short time before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for launch in the spring of 2026.
