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

Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the team achieved a global success with their version of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a classic of electronic music.

He later formed the innovative techno group The Grid, who secured chart success with 1994's the hit 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 headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.

Recent Health Challenges

During that show, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, following a spate of health issues.

"I managed to injure myself quite a bit," he stated in 2023. "I fractured spinal bones in my spine and cracked about multiple ribs and fractured my arm."

Following catching pneumonia and developing sepsis, he was placed in an induced coma and remained in hospital for seven months.

Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits mentally" over the summer, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication 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 so sad as next year was completely planned to be such an positive time for him, and I find comfort from the knowledge that he heard the completed album and believed that it was a great piece of work."

Tributes

Almond described his bandmate as "an exceptionally talented creative mastermind", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.

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

Richard Norris from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".

"Being in a partnership with someone is different from joining a group, the connection is very tight," he continued.

"That's how it was with us. We went through so many extraordinary, incredible, life-affirming moments as a team. Many thanks, Dave."

Formative Years

Born into a single-parent household in Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months old.

He was raised in the seaside town with his new family his caregivers, who altered his first name from his birth name to David, alongside his younger sister his sister, who was similarly welcomed.

He encountered Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both learning fine arts. Fuelled by a mutual passion of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the very year, and promptly produced an EP.

Creative Collaboration

The duo were an unusual combination: Ball was the reserved technician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they attained a rare musical alchemy.

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

Tainted Love became the UK's second biggest-selling single of 1981, shifting 21 million copies worldwide. Alongside hits by Gary Numan, Human League and electronic acts, it contributed to paved 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 additional high-charting singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.

They followed the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at the second position in 1982.

Professional Journey

Fame had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my initial property, having financial security and travelling, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball recently shared with a publication.

But it also caused problems. "Newfound wealth allowed we could afford substances to alleviate the boredom" of press appearances and television shows, Ball explained.

"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it works for so many bands."

During the party-filled existence, the duo were also drifting apart, but they succeeded to create a follow-up classic album - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.

They put out one more album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to focus on other projects.

Almond proceeded to have a successful individual path, including the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who combined dance music with melodic sounds over a enduring collaboration.

Reunions and Final Projects

Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, releasing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.

After a further break, they returned in recent years, issuing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was supposed to be a final performance at the O2 Arena on 30 September, 2018.

Yet, they remained together, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.

Ball recently characterized the duo's new album as a homage to the New York club scene they visited while making their first two albums.

He noted that his period in hospital had influenced the group's music.

"I experienced strange recollections when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on pain medication," he explained to a music magazine.

"The new songs are a electronic representation of the sounds in my mind from that time.

"In parallel, it's about the experiences we had in the 80s."

The final mixes were finished only days before Ball passed away. It is due for launch in Spring 2026.