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Dave Ball, a key member of the pioneering 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.

Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the pair achieved a global success with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record their initial full-length release is regarded as a classic of synth-pop.

He subsequently formed the innovative techno group 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, only a short time after playing 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, after a period of ill-health.

"I managed to injure myself significantly," he commented in a recent interview. "I broke lower vertebrae in my back and fractured about multiple ribs and fractured my arm."

After catching a lung infection and developing blood poisoning, he was put in an induced coma and remained in hospital for half a year.

However, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" over the warmer months, as he was developing a new album with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication in the coming year.

"He was concentrated and so happy with the new album that we literally completed only a few days ago," said the vocalist in a tribute.

"It's truly heartbreaking as 2026 was completely planned to be such an positive time for him, and I find comfort from the knowledge that he heard the finished record and felt that it was a masterpiece."

Heartfelt Messages

Almond referred to his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", adding: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our body of work.

"Many thanks Dave for being an significant part of my existence and for the music you gave me. I wouldn't be where I am without your influence."

Richard Norris from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".

"Forming a duo with someone is different from being in a band, the bond is incredibly close," he added.

"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many extraordinary, extraordinary, memorable moments together. Many thanks, Dave."

Early Life

Born into a one-parent family in Chester in 1959, Ball was given 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 altered his given name from Paul to David, together with his younger sister his sister, who was also adopted.

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

Creative Collaboration

The pair were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the reserved technician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant showman, all glitter and eye-liner; but they attained a unique musical alchemy.

Ball had cultivated a fascination with synthesizers after viewing the band Kraftwerk perform on BBC program a popular series, and began to marry dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.

Tainted Love became the UK's second biggest-selling single of the early 80s, shifting millions of copies globally. Together with successful tracks by Gary Numan, Human League and Ultravox, it contributed to cleared the path for the electronic music style of the 80s.

The track was also featured on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which spawned two further high-charting singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.

They continued the album up with the separate release, Torch, which peaked at the second position in 1982.

Career Highlights

Success had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to afford my first home, having money and exploring, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball not long ago told with a publication.

But it also presented challenges. "Newfound wealth meant we could purchase newfound drugs to relieve the monotony" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball explained.

"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it applies for so many musicians."

Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the pair were also growing distant, but they succeeded to create a second classic album - the unconventional, edgy and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.

They released one more album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the group to concentrate on individual endeavors.

Almond went on to have a successful solo career, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed dance music with melodic sounds over a enduring partnership.

Reunions and Final Projects

Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, producing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.

Following another break, they returned in recent years, 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 remained together, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.

Ball lately characterized the duo's upcoming release as a homage to the New York club scene they frequented while recording their first two albums.

He noted 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 pain medication," he explained to a music magazine.

"The new songs are a digital reflection of the sounds in my head from those days.

"Simultaneously, it's about the times me and Marc had in the 1980s."

The final mixes were completed only days before Ball died. It is due for launch in the spring of 2026.