Dave Ball, one half of the pioneering 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with singer Marc Almond, the pair scored a global success with their version of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in 1984, and their first record their initial full-length release is considered a classic of electronic music.
He subsequently founded the pioneering techno group The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with their 1994 single the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball died peacefully in his rest at his residence in London on October 22, just weeks after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.
Health Struggles
During that show, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, following a period of ill-health.
"I managed to injure myself quite a bit," he commented in a recent interview. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my back and cracked about five ribs and fractured my wrist."
After contracting a lung infection and developing sepsis, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and remained in hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" over the warmer months, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for publication next year.
"He was focused and so happy with the latest project that we actually completed 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 time for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he listened to the finished record and believed that it was a masterpiece."
Tributes
Almond described his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", adding: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.
"Many thanks Dave for being an significant aspect of my existence and for the music you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without your influence."
Richard Norris from The Grid, shared his condolences, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a duo with someone is different from being in a group, the connection is incredibly close," he continued.
"That was the case with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, memorable moments as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Born 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 was raised in the seaside town with his new family his caregivers, who changed his first name from his birth name to his adopted name, together with his sibling Susan, who was also adopted.
He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both studying fine arts. Inspired by a mutual passion of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and quickly recorded an EP.
Musical Partnership
The duo were an distinctive combination: Ball was the quiet technician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they achieved a rare musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a interest with synthesizers after viewing the band Kraftwerk appear on BBC program Tomorrow's World, and began to combine dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second biggest-selling single of the early 80s, selling millions of copies worldwide. Alongside successful tracks by Gary Numan, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it helped paved the path for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The track was also included on their full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which spawned two further top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the record up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at the second position in the following year.
Professional Journey
Success had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to afford my first home, having money and travelling, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball recently shared with a publication.
But it also caused problems. "Sudden riches meant we could purchase newfound drugs to relieve the monotony" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball said.
"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it applies for so many musicians."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also drifting apart, but they managed to produce a second classic album - the wayward, 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 other projects.
Almond proceeded 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 combined acid house with melodic sounds over a enduring partnership.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, producing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further hiatus, they returned in 2018, issuing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was intended to be a final performance at the O2 Arena on 30 September, that year.
Yet, they remained active, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball lately characterized the duo's new album as a homage to the New York club scene they visited while making their initial records.
He noted that his period in medical care had influenced the group's music.
"I experienced unusual memories when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on pain medication," he explained to a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the noises in my head from that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times we got up to in the 1980s."
The final mixes were finished only a short time before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for release in Spring 2026.
