Dave Ball, one half of the innovative 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the pair achieved a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a classic of electronic music.
He later founded the innovative electronic act The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully in his rest at his residence 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.
Recent Health Challenges
During that show, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a spate of ill-health.
"I ended up damage myself significantly," he stated in 2023. "I fractured spinal bones in my spine and cracked about five ribs and broke my arm."
Following contracting pneumonia and developing blood poisoning, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in the hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "a great place mentally" during the warmer months, as he was developing a new album with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is set for publication in the coming year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we actually completed only a short time ago," stated the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's truly heartbreaking as 2026 was all set to be such an positive year for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he listened to the finished record and believed that it was a masterpiece."
Tributes
Almond referred to his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our legacy.
"Many thanks Dave for being an immense aspect of my existence and for the songs you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without you."
Richard Norris from The Grid, shared his condolences, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".
"Being in a partnership with someone is distinct from joining a group, the connection is incredibly close," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many remarkable, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences as a team. Many thanks, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months of age.
He was raised in the seaside town with his new family his caregivers, who changed his first name from his birth name 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 very year, and promptly produced an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The duo were an unusual combination: Ball was the reserved musician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all sparkle and makeup; but they achieved a rare musical alchemy.
Ball had developed a fascination with synthesizers after watching Kraftwerk appear on BBC program a popular series, and began to combine dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second biggest-selling single of 1981, selling millions of units worldwide. Together with successful tracks by other artists, Human League and Ultravox, it helped cleared the path for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The song was also featured on their full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which spawned two further top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at number two in the following year.
Career Highlights
Success had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my initial property, having money and travelling, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball recently told with a music magazine.
But it also caused problems. "Newfound wealth allowed we could afford newfound drugs to relieve the boredom" of press appearances and television shows, Ball explained.
"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it applies for so many musicians."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, the pair were also growing distant, but they succeeded to create a second memorable record - the wayward, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released another LP, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the group to concentrate on other projects.
Almond went on to have a successful solo career, featuring the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed dance music with ambient pop over a long-lasting collaboration.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, releasing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further hiatus, 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 farewell show at the O2 Arena on 30 September, that year.
Yet, they remained active, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.
Ball lately characterized the band's new album as a homage to the NYC nightlife they frequented while recording their initial records.
He added that his period in medical care had influenced the group's music.
"I experienced strange recollections when I was in and out of the hospital because I was on morphine," he told a music magazine.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the noises in my mind from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences me and Marc had in the 80s."
The final mixes were completed only a short time before Ball passed away. It is due for launch in the spring of 2026.
