Dave Ball, one half of the groundbreaking 1980s synth-pop band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with singer Marc Almond, the duo scored a global success with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in 1984, and their first record their initial full-length release is regarded as a classic of electronic music.
He later formed the pioneering techno group The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly in his rest at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.
Health Struggles
During that performance, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, following a period of ill-health.
"I ended up injure myself significantly," he commented in a recent interview. "I fractured spinal bones in my spine and cracked about multiple ribs and fractured my arm."
After catching pneumonia and developing sepsis, he was put in an induced coma and remained in the hospital for half a year.
Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits mentally" during the warmer months, as he was developing 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," stated the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was all set to be such an uplifting time for him, and I find comfort from the knowledge that he heard the completed album and felt that it was a masterpiece."
Tributes
Almond described his collaborator as "an exceptionally talented musical genius", stating: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our legacy.
"Many thanks Dave for being an immense part of my existence and for the songs you created with me. I couldn't be where I am without you."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".
"Forming a duo with someone is distinct from joining a band, the bond is incredibly close," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many extraordinary, incredible, memorable experiences together. Many thanks, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was a year and a half of age.
He grew up in the seaside town with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his first name from his birth name to his adopted name, alongside his sibling his sister, who was also adopted.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both learning art. Fuelled by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they established Soft Cell the same year, and promptly recorded an EP.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an unusual combination: Ball was the reserved technician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all glitter and eye-liner; but they attained a rare creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with synthesizers after watching the band Kraftwerk appear on a television program Tomorrow's World, and started to combine moody electronic sounds to the catchy tunes Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second most popular single of the early 80s, selling 21 million units worldwide. Alongside successful tracks by other artists, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it contributed to paved the way for the synth-pop sound of the 80s.
The song was also featured on their first album, their initial LP, which produced two further high-charting singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at the second position in the following year.
Professional Journey
Fame had its benefits. "I loved being able to afford my first home, having financial security and travelling, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball not long ago shared with a publication.
But it also caused problems. "Newfound wealth meant we could afford newfound drugs to alleviate the boredom" of media interviews and television shows, Ball said.
"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it works for so many musicians."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also growing distant, but they managed to create a second memorable record - the unconventional, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out one more LP, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the group to focus on individual endeavors.
Almond proceeded to have a successful solo career, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who combined dance music with ambient pop over a enduring collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, releasing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
After another break, they returned 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, that year.
Yet, they stayed active, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball lately characterized the band's new album as a homage to the NYC nightlife they visited while making their first two albums.
He noted that his period in medical care had influenced the group's music.
"I had unusual memories when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a music magazine.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the sounds in my head from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times we got up to in the 80s."
The final mixes were completed only a short time before Ball died. It is due for launch in the spring of 2026.
