Dave Ball, one half of the pioneering 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Alongside singer Marc Almond, the duo achieved a worldwide hit with their version of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in 1984, and their debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a classic of synth-pop.
He later founded the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who achieved chart success with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball died calmly in his sleep at his residence in London on October 22, just weeks after performing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.
Health Struggles
During that show, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a spate of health issues.
"I ended up injure myself significantly," he stated in 2023. "I broke lower vertebrae in my back and fractured about five ribs and broke my arm."
Following catching pneumonia and suffering from blood poisoning, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and remained in hospital for seven months.
Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place mentally" over the summer, as he was developing a fresh record with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is set for publication next year.
"He was concentrated 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 2026 was all set to be such an uplifting time for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he heard the completed album and felt that it was a masterpiece."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond described his collaborator as "an exceptionally talented musical genius", stating: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our body of work.
"Many thanks Dave for being an immense part of my existence and for the music you created with me. I couldn't be where I am without your influence."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, shared his condolences, recalling Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".
"Forming a partnership with someone is distinct from joining a band, the bond is very tight," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many extraordinary, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences 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 of age.
He was raised 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, together with his sibling his sister, who was also adopted.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both learning fine arts. Inspired by a shared love of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the very year, and promptly recorded an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The duo were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the quiet technician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all glitter and eye-liner; but they attained a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with electronic instruments after watching the band Kraftwerk appear on BBC program a popular series, and began to combine dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Their signature song became the UK's second most popular song of 1981, selling 21 million copies globally. Together with hits by other artists, Human League and electronic acts, it helped paved the path for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The song was also included on their full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two additional top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the separate release, Torch, which peaked at the second position in the following year.
Professional Journey
Success had its benefits. "I loved being able to purchase my first home, having money and travelling, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball recently told with a music magazine.
But it also caused challenges. "Sudden riches meant we could afford substances to relieve the boredom" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball said.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it applies for so many bands."
Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also drifting apart, but they succeeded to produce a follow-up classic album - the wayward, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released another album, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the group to focus on other projects.
Almond went on to have a prosperous solo career, featuring the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who mixed acid house with melodic sounds over a long-lasting collaboration.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell came back together in 2001, producing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
After a further break, they reappeared in recent years, issuing the new tracks 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.
Yet, they stayed together, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball recently described the band's new album as a tribute to the New York club scene they frequented while recording their first two albums.
He noted that his period in hospital had influenced the band's sound.
"I had strange recollections when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on morphine," he told a publication.
"The new songs are a digital reflection of the sounds in my mind from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times me and Marc had in the 1980s."
The last versions were completed only a short time before Ball died. It is scheduled for release in the spring of 2026.
