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

Together with singer Marc Almond, the duo scored a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record their initial full-length release is considered a seminal work of electronic music.

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

Ball died calmly in his rest at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after performing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in the Thames-side town.

Recent Health Challenges

At that performance, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, after a spate of ill-health.

"I ended up injure myself quite a bit," he commented in 2023. "I broke lower vertebrae in my back and cracked about five ribs and fractured my arm."

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

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

"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we literally completed 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 knowledge that he heard the completed album and felt that it was a masterpiece."

Heartfelt Messages

Almond described his collaborator as "an exceptionally talented musical genius", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our legacy.

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

His Grid bandmate from The Grid, shared his condolences, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".

"Forming a duo with someone is distinct from joining a band, the connection is very tight," he continued.

"That was the case with us. We went through so many extraordinary, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences as a team. Many thanks, Dave."

Early Life

Born into a single-parent household in the city of Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months old.

He grew up in Blackpool with adoptive parents his caregivers, who changed his first name from his birth name to his adopted name, together with his sibling his sister, who was also adopted.

He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both studying art. Fuelled by a mutual passion of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and quickly produced an EP.

Musical Partnership

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

Ball had developed a fascination with electronic instruments after watching the band Kraftwerk perform on a television program a popular series, and started to marry dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was writing.

Tainted Love became the UK's second most popular song of the early 80s, shifting millions of copies globally. Alongside hits by Gary Numan, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it contributed to paved the path for the electronic music style of the 80s.

The track was also included on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which spawned two additional top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.

They continued the album up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at number two in 1982.

Career Highlights

Fame had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to afford my first home, having money and travelling, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball recently shared with a publication.

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

"I know that's a common saying, 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 succeeded to produce a second memorable record - the unconventional, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.

They put out another LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the group to concentrate on other projects.

Almond went on to have a prosperous individual path, including the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who combined acid house with melodic sounds over a long-lasting partnership.

Later Work and Comebacks

Soft Cell reunited in 2001, releasing 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 performing what was intended to be a final performance at the large venue on 30 September, that year.

However, they remained active, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.

Ball lately characterized the duo's new album as a tribute to the New York club scene they visited while recording their first two albums.

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

"I had unusual memories when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on morphine," he told a publication.

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

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

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