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Dave Ball, one half of the innovative 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.

Alongside singer Marc Almond, the pair achieved a global success with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in 1984, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a seminal work of electronic music.

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

Ball passed away calmly in his rest at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after performing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in Henley-on-Thames.

Recent Health Challenges

At that performance, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a period of ill-health.

"I managed to damage myself quite a bit," he commented in 2023. "I broke lower vertebrae in my spine and fractured about multiple ribs and broke my arm."

After contracting pneumonia and developing blood poisoning, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in the hospital for seven months.

Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place emotionally" during the summer, as he worked on a new album with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for publication next year.

"He was concentrated and very pleased with the latest project that we actually finished only a few days ago," said the vocalist in a heartfelt message.

"It's truly heartbreaking as 2026 was completely planned to be such an positive time for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he listened to the finished record and felt that it was a great piece of work."

Tributes

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

"Many thanks Dave for being an immense part of my existence and for the music you gave me. I wouldn't be where I am without you."

His Grid bandmate from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".

"Being in a duo with someone is distinct from being in a group, the connection is incredibly close," he added.

"That's how it was with us. We went through so many remarkable, incredible, memorable experiences together. Many thanks, Dave."

Early Life

Brought into the world into a single-parent household in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half old.

He was raised in Blackpool with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his given name from Paul to David, together with his younger sister Susan, who was also adopted.

He encountered Almond at an art college in the late 70s, where they were both learning art. Fuelled by a mutual passion of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the same year, and quickly recorded an extended play.

Creative Collaboration

The duo were an unusual combination: Ball was the quiet musician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all glitter and makeup; but they attained a unique creative synergy.

Ball had developed a fascination with synthesizers after watching Kraftwerk perform on a television program a popular series, and started to marry moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.

Their signature song became the United Kingdom's second most popular single of 1981, shifting 21 million units globally. Together with successful tracks by Gary Numan, Human League and Ultravox, it helped cleared the way for the electronic music style of the 1980s.

The track was also featured on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two additional high-charting singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.

They continued the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at number two in the following year.

Professional Journey

Success had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to afford my initial property, having financial security and travelling, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball not long ago told with a publication.

But it also caused challenges. "Newfound wealth meant we could purchase newfound drugs to relieve the boredom" of press appearances and television shows, Ball explained.

"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it applies for so many bands."

Amidst the party-filled existence, the pair were also growing distant, but they succeeded to produce a follow-up classic album - the unconventional, edgy and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.

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

Almond proceeded to have a prosperous solo career, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who combined acid house with ambient pop over a long-lasting partnership.

Later Work and Comebacks

Soft Cell reunited in 2001, releasing the Top 40 record Cruelty Without Beauty.

Following another break, they reappeared in 2018, issuing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was supposed to be a final performance at the large venue on September 30, 2018.

Yet, they remained together, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.

Ball lately characterized the duo's new album as a tribute to the New York club scene they frequented while recording their initial records.

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

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

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

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

The last versions were finished only a short time before Ball died. It is scheduled for launch in the spring of 2026.