Dave Ball, one half of the groundbreaking 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with singer Marc Almond, the duo achieved a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record their initial full-length release is regarded as a seminal work of synth-pop.
He later formed the innovative electronic act The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly in his rest at his home in London on October 22, just weeks after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in the Thames-side town.
Recent Health Challenges
At that performance, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, after a period of ill-health.
"I managed to injure myself significantly," he stated in a recent interview. "I broke spinal bones in my spine and fractured about multiple ribs and broke my wrist."
Following catching pneumonia and developing sepsis, he was placed in an induced coma and remained in the hospital for seven months.
Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place mentally" over the warmer months, as he worked on a new album with Almond, called Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication next year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we literally completed only a few days ago," said the singer in a tribute.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was all set to be such an uplifting year for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he heard the finished record and felt that it was a masterpiece."
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 existence and for the music you gave me. I couldn't be where I am without your influence."
Richard Norris from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".
"Being in a duo with someone is distinct from being in a group, the connection is incredibly close," he added.
"That was the case with us. We went through so many extraordinary, incredible, memorable experiences as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in the city of Chester in 1959, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months old.
He grew up in the seaside town with his new family his caregivers, who changed his first name from Paul to David, alongside his sibling his sister, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both learning art. Inspired by a mutual passion of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and promptly recorded an extended play.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an distinctive combination: Ball was the quiet musician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all glitter and makeup; but they achieved a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had developed a interest with synthesizers after watching the band Kraftwerk appear on BBC science show a popular series, and started to combine moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second biggest-selling song of the early 80s, selling 21 million units globally. Alongside successful tracks by other artists, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it contributed to cleared the path for the synth-pop sound of the 80s.
The track was also featured on their full-length debut, their initial LP, which produced two additional top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at number two in 1982.
Career Highlights
Success had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my initial property, having money and exploring, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball not long ago told with a music magazine.
But it also caused problems. "Newfound wealth meant we could afford newfound drugs to alleviate the monotony" of media interviews and television shows, Ball said.
"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a good reason, because it works for so many musicians."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also drifting apart, but they succeeded to produce a second memorable record - the unconventional, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released another LP, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to concentrate on other projects.
Almond went on to have a prosperous individual path, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed acid house with ambient pop over a long-lasting collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell came back together in 2001, producing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another hiatus, they returned in 2018, issuing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was supposed to be a final performance at the large venue on September 30, that year.
However, they stayed together, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball lately described the duo's upcoming release as a tribute to the New York club scene they frequented while recording their first two albums.
He added that his time in medical care had shaped the band's sound.
"I had unusual memories when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on pain medication," he explained to a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the noises in my mind from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences we had in the 80s."
The last versions were finished only a short time before Ball died. It is scheduled for release in the spring of 2026.
