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Dave Ball, a key member of the groundbreaking 1980s synth-pop band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.

Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the team scored a worldwide hit with their version of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record their initial full-length release is considered a classic of electronic music.

He later founded the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who secured chart success with their 1994 single the hit Swamp Thing.

Ball died calmly in his rest at his residence in London on October 22, only a short time after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.

Recent Health Challenges

At that performance, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, following a spate of ill-health.

"I managed to damage myself quite a bit," he commented in a recent interview. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my back and cracked about multiple ribs and fractured my wrist."

After contracting a lung infection and suffering from blood poisoning, he was placed in an induced coma and remained in hospital for seven months.

Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place mentally" during the warmer months, as he was developing a new album with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication next year.

"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we literally completed only a short time ago," said the singer 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 knowledge 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 creative mastermind", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our legacy.

"Many thanks Dave for being an significant aspect of my life and for the music you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without you."

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

"Being in 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, 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 a year and a half of age.

He grew up in the seaside town with adoptive parents his caregivers, who altered his first name from Paul to David, alongside his younger sister his sister, who was similarly welcomed.

He met Almond at an art college in the late 70s, where they were both learning fine arts. Inspired by a mutual passion of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and quickly recorded an EP.

Creative Collaboration

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

Ball had cultivated a interest with electronic instruments after viewing the band 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 song of the early 80s, shifting millions of copies worldwide. Together with successful tracks by other artists, Human League and electronic acts, it helped paved the way for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.

The song was also featured on their full-length debut, their initial LP, which produced two further high-charting singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.

They followed the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at number two in the following year.

Career Highlights

Fame had its benefits. "I loved being able to afford my initial property, having money and travelling, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball recently told with a publication.

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

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

Amidst the party-filled existence, the duo were also growing distant, but they succeeded to produce a follow-up memorable record - the wayward, edgy and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.

They put out one more LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending 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 formed The Grid, who mixed dance music with ambient pop over a long-lasting collaboration.

Reunions and Final Projects

Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, releasing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.

Following another break, they reappeared in recent years, releasing the original singles 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, 2018.

However, they stayed together, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.

Ball lately characterized the band's upcoming release as a tribute to the NYC nightlife they frequented while recording their first two albums.

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

"I had unusual memories when I was in and out of hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a publication.

"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the noises in my mind from those days.

"In parallel, it's about the times we got up to in the 1980s."

The last versions were finished only a short time before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for launch in Spring 2026.