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

Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the team scored a global success with their version of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album their initial full-length release is regarded as a seminal work of electronic music.

He subsequently founded the innovative techno group The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with 1994's Swamp Thing.

Ball passed away calmly in his sleep at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in the Thames-side town.

Health Struggles

During that performance, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a period of health issues.

"I ended up damage myself quite a bit," he commented in a recent interview. "I fractured spinal bones in my back and fractured about five ribs and fractured my wrist."

After catching pneumonia and suffering from blood poisoning, he was put in an induced coma and stayed in the hospital for seven months.

However, he had been in "high spirits mentally" over the summer, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for release next year.

"He was focused and so happy with the latest project that we literally finished only a short time ago," stated the singer in a tribute.

"It's truly heartbreaking as 2026 was all set to be such an uplifting year for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he heard the completed album and believed that it was a great piece of work."

Heartfelt Messages

Almond referred to his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our body of work.

"Thank you Dave for being an significant part of my life and for the songs you gave me. I couldn't be where I am without you."

His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".

"Being in a partnership with someone is different from being in a group, the bond is very tight," he added.

"That was the case with us. We experienced so many remarkable, incredible, life-affirming experiences as a team. Thank you, Dave."

Formative Years

Born into a single-parent household in the city of 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 adoptive parents Donald and Brenda Ball, who altered his given name from his birth name to his adopted name, alongside his younger sister Susan, who was similarly welcomed.

He encountered Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both studying fine arts. Inspired by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and promptly recorded an extended play.

Musical Partnership

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

Ball had cultivated a interest with synthesizers after watching the band Kraftwerk perform on a television science show a popular series, and started to marry moody electronic sounds to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.

Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling song of 1981, selling millions of copies globally. Together with successful tracks by other artists, Human League and electronic acts, it helped cleared the path for the synth-pop sound of the 80s.

The song was also included on their full-length debut, their initial LP, which spawned 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 the second position in the following year.

Career Highlights

Success had its benefits. "I loved being able to afford my initial property, having financial security and exploring, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball recently shared with a music magazine.

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

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

During the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also growing distant, but they managed to create a follow-up memorable record - the wayward, edgy and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.

They released one more album, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to focus on other projects.

Almond went on to have a prosperous solo career, including the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who combined dance music with ambient pop over a enduring collaboration.

Later Work and Comebacks

Soft Cell came back together in 2001, releasing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.

Following a further hiatus, they returned in 2018, releasing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was intended to be a final performance at the O2 Arena on 30 September, that year.

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

Ball recently described the duo's upcoming release as a tribute to the NYC nightlife they frequented while making their initial records.

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

"I had strange recollections when I was in and out of hospital because I was on morphine," he told a music magazine.

"The new songs are a digital reflection of the noises in my head from that time.

"Simultaneously, it's about the times me and Marc had in the 80s."

The last versions were finished only days before Ball passed away. It is due for launch in the spring of 2026.