Dave Ball, one half of the pioneering 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the pair scored a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album their initial full-length release is considered a seminal work of synth-pop.
He subsequently founded the innovative 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, only a short time after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
During that show, 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 quite a bit," he stated in 2023. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my back and cracked about multiple ribs and fractured my arm."
Following contracting a lung infection and suffering from sepsis, he was placed in an induced coma and stayed in hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "a great place mentally" during the summer, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, called Danceteria, which is scheduled for release in the coming year.
"He was concentrated and very pleased with the latest project that we actually finished only a short time ago," said the singer in a heartfelt message.
"It's truly heartbreaking as 2026 was all set to be such an uplifting year for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he listened to the completed album and believed that it was a masterpiece."
Tributes
Almond described his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our body of work.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense part of my existence and for the music you gave me. I couldn't be where I am without your influence."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "steadfast support".
"Being in a partnership with someone is different from joining a group, the connection is very tight," he continued.
"That was the case with us. We went through so many extraordinary, extraordinary, life-affirming moments together. Many thanks, Dave."
Early Life
Born into a single-parent household in Chester in 1959, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half of age.
He grew up in Blackpool with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his first name from his birth name to his adopted name, alongside his younger sister Susan, who was also adopted.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both learning art. Inspired by a mutual passion of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the same year, and quickly produced an extended play.
Creative Collaboration
The duo were an unusual combination: Ball was the quiet technician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all sparkle and makeup; but they achieved a rare creative synergy.
Ball had developed a interest with synthesizers after watching Kraftwerk appear on BBC program Tomorrow's World, and started to marry moody electronic sounds to the catchy tunes Almond was writing.
Their signature song became the UK's second biggest-selling song of the early 80s, shifting millions of copies globally. Alongside successful tracks by other artists, Human League and Ultravox, it contributed to paved the path for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The song was also included on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which spawned two additional high-charting hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at the second position in the following year.
Professional Journey
Success had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my first home, having money and travelling, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball not long ago told with a music magazine.
But it also caused challenges. "Newfound wealth allowed we could purchase newfound drugs to relieve the monotony" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it applies for so many bands."
During the party-filled existence, the duo were also growing distant, but they managed to produce a second memorable record - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more LP, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to focus on other projects.
Almond proceeded to have a successful solo career, including the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who combined acid house with ambient pop over a long-lasting collaboration.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, producing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further hiatus, 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 farewell show at the O2 Arena on September 30, 2018.
However, they stayed active, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball recently characterized the duo's upcoming release as a tribute to the New York club scene they visited while recording their first two albums.
He added that his period in medical care had shaped the band's sound.
"I experienced unusual memories when I was in and out of the hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a music magazine.
"The new songs are a electronic representation of the noises in my head from that time.
"In parallel, it's about the experiences me and Marc got up to in the 1980s."
The final mixes were completed only a short time before Ball died. It is scheduled for release in Spring 2026.
