Dave Ball, one half of the groundbreaking 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the pair scored a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in 1984, and their first record their initial full-length release is considered a classic of electronic music.
He later formed the innovative techno group The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully in his sleep at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after performing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in Henley-on-Thames.
Recent Health Challenges
At that performance, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, following a spate of ill-health.
"I managed to damage myself quite a bit," he stated in 2023. "I fractured spinal bones in my spine and fractured about five ribs and fractured my arm."
After catching a lung infection and developing blood poisoning, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and remained in hospital for half a year.
Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place emotionally" over the warmer months, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, called Danceteria, which is set for publication in the coming year.
"He was focused and so happy with the latest project that we actually finished only a few days ago," said the singer in a heartfelt message.
"It's so sad as next year was completely planned to be such an uplifting year for him, and I find comfort from the knowledge that he listened to the finished record and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond referred to his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", stating: "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 wouldn't be where I am without you."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "constant humor" and "steadfast support".
"Being in a duo with someone is distinct from joining a band, the bond is very tight," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, life-affirming moments as a team. Many thanks, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months old.
He grew up in the seaside town with adoptive parents Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his given name from Paul to his adopted name, alongside his sibling Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both learning art. Inspired by a mutual passion of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the very year, and quickly produced an EP.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an unusual combination: Ball was the reserved musician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant showman, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they achieved a rare musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a interest with electronic instruments after viewing Kraftwerk appear on a television program Tomorrow's World, and started to combine dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second most popular single of the early 80s, shifting millions of units worldwide. Alongside successful tracks by other artists, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it contributed to cleared the way for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The track was also included on their full-length debut, their initial LP, 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 number two in the following year.
Professional Journey
Fame had its upsides. "I loved being able to purchase my initial property, having money and travelling, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball not long ago told with a publication.
But it also caused problems. "Sudden riches meant we could afford substances to relieve the monotony" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball said.
"I know that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it applies for so many bands."
Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also drifting apart, but they succeeded to produce a second classic album - 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 focus on individual endeavors.
Almond proceeded to have a prosperous solo career, including the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who combined acid house with melodic sounds over a enduring partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, releasing the Top 40 record Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further break, 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 stayed together, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball lately characterized the band's new album as a homage to the New York club scene they visited while recording their initial records.
He added that his period in hospital had shaped the band's sound.
"I had strange recollections when I was in and out of the hospital because I was on pain medication," he explained to a publication.
"The new songs are a digital reflection of the sounds in my mind from that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences me and Marc got up to in the 1980s."
The last versions were finished only days before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for launch in the spring of 2026.
