Dave Ball, one half of the groundbreaking 1980s synth-pop band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with singer Marc Almond, the team scored a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a classic of synth-pop.
He later formed the innovative electronic act The Grid, who secured chart success with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball died peacefully in his rest 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
During that show, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the previous couple of years, following a spate of health issues.
"I managed to damage myself quite a bit," he commented in a recent interview. "I broke spinal bones in my spine and cracked about five ribs and fractured my wrist."
After catching pneumonia and developing sepsis, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in the hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "high spirits mentally" during the summer, as he was developing a new album with Almond, called Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication next year.
"He was focused and so happy with the latest project that we actually finished only a short time ago," stated the vocalist in a heartfelt message.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was all set to be such an positive year for him, and I find comfort from the fact that he listened to the finished record and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond referred to his bandmate as "an exceptionally talented creative mastermind", adding: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our legacy.
"Many thanks Dave for being an significant aspect of my existence and for the songs you gave me. I couldn't be where I am without you."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".
"Forming a duo with someone is different from being in a group, the connection is very tight," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many extraordinary, extraordinary, memorable moments as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in the city of Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half of age.
He grew up in Blackpool with his new family his caregivers, who changed his given name from Paul to his adopted name, together with his younger sister Susan, who was also adopted.
He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both studying art. Fuelled by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and promptly recorded an EP.
Musical Partnership
The duo were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the quiet musician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all sparkle and makeup; but they attained a rare creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with synthesizers after viewing the band Kraftwerk perform on BBC program Tomorrow's World, and began to combine dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.
Their signature song became the United Kingdom's second most popular single of the early 80s, shifting 21 million units globally. Alongside hits 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 first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which spawned two further top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the record up with the separate release, Torch, which peaked at number two in 1982.
Career Highlights
Fame had its benefits. "I loved being able to purchase my first home, having financial security and travelling, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball recently told with a music magazine.
But it also presented challenges. "Newfound wealth meant we could afford newfound drugs to alleviate the boredom" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball said.
"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it works for so many bands."
Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the pair were also growing distant, but they succeeded to create a second classic album - the wayward, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out another album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to focus on other projects.
Almond went on to have a prosperous solo career, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed acid house with melodic sounds over a enduring partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, releasing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further break, they reappeared in recent years, issuing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was intended to be a final performance at the O2 Arena on September 30, 2018.
Yet, they stayed active, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.
Ball lately described the band's new album as a tribute to the NYC nightlife they visited while making their initial records.
He added that his time in medical care had shaped the band's sound.
"I experienced unusual memories when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on pain medication," he told a publication.
"The new songs are a digital reflection of the noises in my head from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences we had in the 1980s."
The last versions were finished only days before Ball died. It is scheduled for release in Spring 2026.
