Dave Ball, one half of the pioneering 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the pair achieved a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a seminal work of electronic music.
He later formed the pioneering techno group The Grid, who achieved chart success with their 1994 single the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball died calmly in his sleep at his residence 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.
Health Struggles
At that show, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a spate of ill-health.
"I managed to injure myself significantly," he stated in a recent interview. "I fractured spinal bones in my spine and cracked about five ribs and fractured my arm."
After catching pneumonia and developing sepsis, he was placed in an induced coma and remained in the hospital for half a year.
Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place emotionally" during the summer, as he worked on a new album with Almond, called Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication in the coming year.
"He was focused and so happy with the latest project that we literally finished only a short time ago," said the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was completely planned to be such an uplifting year for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he heard the finished record and felt that it was a great piece of work."
Tributes
Almond referred to his bandmate as "an exceptionally talented musical genius", stating: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our legacy.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense part of my existence and for the music you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without you."
Richard Norris from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".
"Forming a partnership with someone is different from being in a group, the connection is very tight," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many extraordinary, extraordinary, memorable experiences together. 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 old.
He grew up in Blackpool with his new family his caregivers, who altered his given name from Paul to David, together with his younger sister his sister, who was also adopted.
He encountered 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 very year, and quickly produced an extended play.
Musical Partnership
The duo were an unusual pairing: Ball was the reserved musician, hunched over his synthesizer, while Almond was a flamboyant showman, all sparkle and makeup; but they achieved a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had developed a interest with synthesizers after watching Kraftwerk appear on BBC science show a popular series, and started to marry moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling single of 1981, shifting millions of units worldwide. Together with hits by other artists, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it helped cleared the way for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The track was also included on their first album, their initial LP, which spawned two additional high-charting singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at the second position in the following year.
Professional Journey
Fame had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my initial property, having money and exploring, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago told with a music magazine.
But it also caused problems. "Sudden riches allowed we could purchase substances to relieve the boredom" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it applies for so many musicians."
During the party-filled existence, the pair were also growing distant, but they succeeded to produce a follow-up memorable record - the unconventional, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to concentrate on other projects.
Almond proceeded to have a successful individual path, featuring the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who combined dance music with melodic sounds over a long-lasting collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, producing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further hiatus, they returned in recent years, releasing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was supposed to be a final performance at the large venue on 30 September, that year.
Yet, they remained active, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball recently described the band's upcoming release as a tribute to the New York club scene they visited while making their first two albums.
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 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.
"In parallel, it's about the experiences me and Marc got up to in the 80s."
The last versions were completed only days before Ball died. It is scheduled for release in the spring of 2026.
