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

Together with singer Marc Almond, the team achieved a global success with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a seminal work of electronic music.

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

Ball passed away calmly in his rest at his home in London on October 22, just weeks after performing a featured performance 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 previous couple of years, after a spate of health issues.

"I managed to damage myself significantly," he stated in 2023. "I fractured spinal bones in my spine and fractured about five ribs and broke my arm."

Following catching pneumonia and developing blood poisoning, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and remained in hospital for seven months.

Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place emotionally" over the warmer months, as he was developing a fresh record with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for release in the coming year.

"He was concentrated and so happy with the latest project that we literally completed only a short time ago," stated the vocalist in a tribute.

"It's truly heartbreaking as 2026 was completely planned to be such an uplifting time for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he listened to the completed album and believed that it was a masterpiece."

Tributes

Almond referred to his bandmate as "an exceptionally talented creative mastermind", adding: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.

"Many thanks Dave for being an significant aspect of my existence and for the songs 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 "steadfast support".

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

"That was the case with us. We went through so many extraordinary, incredible, memorable moments together. Many thanks, Dave."

Formative Years

Brought into the world into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months old.

He was raised in the seaside town with adoptive parents Donald and Brenda Ball, who altered his first name from Paul to David, alongside his younger sister Susan, who was similarly welcomed.

He met Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both learning art. Inspired by a shared love of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and quickly recorded an EP.

Musical Partnership

The pair were an unusual pairing: Ball was the quiet technician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all glitter and eye-liner; but they attained a rare creative synergy.

Ball had cultivated a interest with synthesizers after viewing Kraftwerk perform on a television program a popular series, and began to combine dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was writing.

Tainted Love became the UK's second biggest-selling song of the early 80s, selling millions of units worldwide. Together with successful tracks by Gary Numan, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it contributed to cleared the way for the electronic music style of the 1980s.

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

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

Professional Journey

Success had its upsides. "I loved being able to purchase my initial property, having money and travelling, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball recently shared with a music magazine.

But it also presented challenges. "Sudden riches allowed we could purchase substances to relieve the monotony" of media interviews and television shows, Ball explained.

"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 managed to produce a follow-up classic album - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.

They put out another LP, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to concentrate on other projects.

Almond went on to have a successful 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 collaboration.

Reunions and Final Projects

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

Following another hiatus, they returned in recent years, releasing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was intended to be a farewell show at the large venue on September 30, 2018.

However, they stayed active, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.

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

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

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

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

"In parallel, it's about the experiences we had in the 80s."

The final mixes were finished only days before Ball died. It is scheduled for launch in Spring 2026.