Dave Ball, one half of the innovative 1980s electronic music duo 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 their initial full-length release is regarded as a classic of electronic music.
He later formed the innovative electronic act The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with their 1994 single the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully in his sleep at his home in London on October 22, just weeks after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in the Thames-side town.
Health Struggles
At that show, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, after a spate of health issues.
"I managed to injure myself quite a bit," he commented in a recent interview. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my spine and fractured about multiple ribs and broke my arm."
Following contracting a lung infection and developing sepsis, he was put in an induced coma and remained in hospital for seven months.
Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits mentally" over the warmer months, as he worked on a new album with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for publication next year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the latest project that we literally completed only a few days ago," stated the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's so sad as 2026 was completely planned to be such an positive time for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he heard the completed album and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond described his collaborator as "an exceptionally talented musical genius", adding: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our body of work.
"Many thanks Dave for being an significant aspect of my existence and for the songs you created with me. I couldn't be where I am without your influence."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a duo with someone is distinct from being in a group, the connection is very tight," he added.
"That was the case with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, memorable experiences as a team. Many thanks, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months of age.
He was raised in the seaside town with adoptive parents his caregivers, who changed his given name from his birth name to David, alongside his younger sister Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both learning fine arts. Fuelled by a shared love of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and promptly recorded an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The duo were an unusual pairing: Ball was the reserved musician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant showman, all glitter and makeup; but they achieved a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with electronic instruments after viewing Kraftwerk appear on BBC program a popular series, and started to combine dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling single of 1981, selling 21 million units worldwide. Together with successful tracks by other artists, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it helped 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 produced two further top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at the second position in 1982.
Professional Journey
Success had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to afford my first home, having money and travelling, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball not long ago shared with a music magazine.
But it also presented problems. "Newfound wealth allowed we could purchase substances to relieve the boredom" of press appearances and television shows, Ball said.
"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it applies for so many musicians."
During the party-filled existence, the duo were also drifting apart, but they managed to create a second memorable record - the unconventional, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released another album, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band 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 enduring partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell came back together in 2001, releasing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another break, they returned in 2018, issuing the new tracks 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, 2018.
However, they stayed together, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic restrictions.
Ball recently characterized the band's new album as a homage to the NYC nightlife they frequented while recording their first two albums.
He added that his period in medical care had influenced the band's sound.
"I had strange recollections when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on morphine," he told a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the sounds in my head from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times we had in the 1980s."
The final mixes were completed only days before Ball died. It is scheduled for release in Spring 2026.
