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Dave Ball, one half of the pioneering 1980s synth-pop band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.

Alongside singer Marc Almond, the duo achieved a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a classic of electronic music.

He subsequently founded the innovative electronic act The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with 1994's Swamp Thing.

Ball died calmly in his sleep at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.

Recent Health Challenges

At that show, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the previous couple of years, following a spate of ill-health.

"I managed to injure myself significantly," he commented in 2023. "I broke lower vertebrae in my spine and fractured about five ribs and broke my arm."

After contracting a lung infection and developing sepsis, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in hospital for seven months.

Nevertheless, 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 set for release next year.

"He was concentrated and very pleased with the latest project that we literally completed only a few days ago," stated the vocalist in a tribute.

"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was completely planned to be such an uplifting time for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he listened to the finished record and felt that it was a masterpiece."

Heartfelt Messages

Almond referred to his collaborator as "an exceptionally talented musical genius", stating: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our legacy.

"Thank you Dave for being an immense part of my existence and for the songs you gave me. I wouldn't be where I am without your influence."

Richard Norris from The Grid, shared his condolences, recalling Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".

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

"That was the case with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, memorable experiences together. Thank you, Dave."

Formative Years

Brought into the world into a single-parent household in Chester in 1959, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months old.

He was raised in the seaside town with adoptive parents his caregivers, who changed his first name from his birth name to David, alongside his sibling his sister, who was also adopted.

He encountered Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both studying art. Fuelled by a mutual passion of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and promptly produced an EP.

Creative Collaboration

The pair were an distinctive combination: Ball was the quiet technician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all glitter and makeup; but they achieved a rare musical alchemy.

Ball had cultivated a fascination with electronic instruments after viewing Kraftwerk appear on BBC science show Tomorrow's World, and started to combine dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.

Their signature song became the United Kingdom's second most popular single of the early 80s, shifting 21 million units globally. Alongside hits by other artists, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it helped paved the path for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.

The song was also included on their full-length debut, their initial LP, which spawned 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

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

But it also caused challenges. "Sudden riches allowed we could purchase substances to alleviate the boredom" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball said.

"I know that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it applies for so many bands."

During the hedonistic lifestyle, the pair were also growing distant, but they managed to create a second memorable record - the unconventional, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.

They released another LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to concentrate 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 dance music with melodic sounds over a long-lasting collaboration.

Later Work and Comebacks

Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, producing the Top 40 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 staging what was supposed to be a farewell show at the O2 Arena on September 30, that year.

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

Ball lately characterized the band's new album as a tribute to the NYC nightlife they frequented while making their first two albums.

He added that his period in medical care had shaped the group's music.

"I had strange recollections when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a music magazine.

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

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

The final mixes were completed only a short time before Ball died. It is due for launch in Spring 2026.