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

Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the duo scored a global success with their version of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record their initial full-length release is considered a seminal work of synth-pop.

He later formed the innovative electronic act The Grid, who achieved chart success with 1994's Swamp Thing.

Ball died calmly in his rest at his home in London on October 22, just weeks after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in Henley-on-Thames.

Health Struggles

During that performance, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, after a period of ill-health.

"I ended up injure myself quite a bit," he stated in a recent interview. "I broke lower vertebrae in my back and fractured about multiple ribs and fractured my wrist."

After contracting pneumonia and suffering from blood poisoning, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and remained in the hospital for half a year.

Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits mentally" during the warmer months, as he was developing a fresh record with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for publication next year.

"He was concentrated and very pleased with the latest project that we literally completed only a short time ago," stated the singer in a heartfelt message.

"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 finished record and felt that it was a masterpiece."

Tributes

Almond described his bandmate as "an exceptionally talented musical genius", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our body of work.

"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."

His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "steadfast support".

"Forming a duo with someone is distinct from joining a group, the bond is incredibly close," he added.

"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences together. Thank you, Dave."

Formative Years

Born into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in the late 50s, Ball was given up for adoption when he was a year and a half of age.

He was raised in the seaside town with his new family his caregivers, who changed his given name from his birth name to David, together with his younger sister his sister, who was also adopted.

He encountered Almond at an art college in the late 70s, where they were both studying fine arts. Inspired by a shared love of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the same year, and promptly recorded an extended play.

Musical Partnership

The pair were an unusual pairing: Ball was the reserved technician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all glitter and makeup; but they attained a unique musical alchemy.

Ball had cultivated a interest with electronic instruments after viewing the band Kraftwerk appear on a television science show Tomorrow's World, and began to marry dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.

Their signature song became the UK's second biggest-selling song of the early 80s, selling millions of units globally. Alongside successful tracks by Gary Numan, Human League and electronic acts, it helped paved the path for the electronic music style of the 1980s.

The song was also featured on their first album, their initial LP, which produced two further high-charting hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.

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

Career Highlights

Success had its benefits. "I loved being able to purchase my first home, having money and exploring, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago shared with a music magazine.

But it also presented challenges. "Newfound wealth allowed we could purchase newfound drugs to alleviate the monotony" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball said.

"I know that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it applies for so many musicians."

Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the pair were also growing distant, but they succeeded to create a follow-up classic album - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.

They released one more album, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to concentrate on other projects.

Almond proceeded to have a successful individual path, including the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed dance music with melodic sounds over a long-lasting collaboration.

Later Work and Comebacks

Soft Cell came back together in 2001, releasing the Top 40 record Cruelty Without Beauty.

Following a further hiatus, they reappeared 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, 2018.

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

Ball recently described the band's new album as a tribute to the NYC nightlife they frequented while recording their initial records.

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

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

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

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

The final mixes were finished only days before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for release in the spring of 2026.