Soft Cell's Musical Force Dave Ball Passes Away, Aged 66

Dave Ball, one half of the groundbreaking 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.

Together with singer Marc Almond, the team scored a worldwide hit with their version of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in 1984, and their debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a classic of electronic music.

He subsequently formed the innovative techno group The Grid, who secured chart success with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.

Ball died calmly in his rest at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after performing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival 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 period of health issues.

"I managed to injure myself quite a bit," he stated in 2023. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my back and fractured about five ribs and broke my arm."

Following catching pneumonia and developing blood poisoning, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and remained in hospital for seven months.

Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place emotionally" over the warmer months, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, called Danceteria, which is set for release next year.

"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we actually finished only a short time ago," stated the singer in a tribute.

"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was all set to be such an uplifting time for him, and I find comfort from the fact that he heard the completed album and felt that it was a great piece of work."

Tributes

Almond described his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", adding: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our legacy.

"Thank you Dave for being an immense aspect of my life and for the songs you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without your influence."

Richard Norris from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".

"Forming a partnership with someone is different from joining a group, the connection is incredibly close," he added.

"That was the case with us. We went through so many remarkable, incredible, memorable experiences as a team. Many thanks, Dave."

Formative Years

Born into a single-parent household in the city of Chester in 1959, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months of age.

He was raised in Blackpool with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who altered his given name from his birth name to his adopted name, alongside his sibling Susan, who was also adopted.

He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both studying fine arts. Fuelled by a shared love of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and quickly produced an extended play.

Creative Collaboration

The pair were an distinctive combination: Ball was the reserved technician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all glitter and eye-liner; but they attained a rare creative synergy.

Ball had developed a fascination with electronic instruments after watching Kraftwerk appear on a television science show Tomorrow's World, and started to combine dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.

Tainted Love became the UK's second most popular single of the early 80s, selling 21 million units globally. Together with hits by other artists, Human League and Ultravox, it contributed to cleared the way for the electronic music style of the 80s.

The track was also included on their full-length debut, their initial LP, which produced two additional top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.

They followed the album up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at the second position in the following year.

Professional Journey

Success had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to afford my initial property, having money and exploring, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago shared with a publication.

But it also caused challenges. "Newfound wealth allowed we could afford substances to alleviate the monotony" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball explained.

"I know 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 follow-up classic album - the unconventional, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.

They released one more album, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to concentrate on other projects.

Almond proceeded to have a prosperous solo career, featuring the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who combined acid house 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 2018, releasing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was supposed to be a farewell show at the O2 Arena on September 30, that year.

However, they stayed active, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.

Ball recently characterized the band's new album as a tribute to the New York club scene they frequented while making their first two albums.

He noted that his period in hospital had shaped the band's sound.

"I had strange recollections when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on pain medication," he told a music magazine.

"The new songs are a electronic representation of the noises in my mind from those days.

"In parallel, it's about the experiences we had in the 1980s."

The last versions were finished only a short time before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for release in the spring of 2026.