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

Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the team achieved a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in 1984, and their debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a seminal work of electronic music.

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

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

Health Struggles

During that show, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, after a spate of health issues.

"I managed to injure myself significantly," he stated in a recent interview. "I broke lower vertebrae in my back and cracked about five ribs and fractured my arm."

Following contracting pneumonia and suffering from sepsis, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in the hospital for seven months.

However, he had been in "high spirits mentally" over the summer, as he was developing a new album with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication in the coming year.

"He was focused and so happy with the new album that we literally completed only a few days ago," stated 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 find comfort from the knowledge that he listened to the completed album and felt that it was a great piece of work."

Tributes

Almond referred to his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", adding: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our legacy.

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

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

"Forming a partnership with someone is distinct from joining a group, the bond is very tight," he continued.

"That was the case with us. We experienced so many extraordinary, incredible, memorable experiences together. Thank you, Dave."

Formative Years

Brought into the world into a single-parent household in 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 adoptive parents Donald and Brenda Ball, who altered his first name from Paul to his adopted name, together with his younger sister Susan, who was also adopted.

He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both studying art. Inspired by a shared love of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and promptly recorded an EP.

Creative Collaboration

The duo were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the reserved technician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they achieved a unique creative synergy.

Ball had cultivated a fascination with synthesizers after viewing the band Kraftwerk appear on BBC program Tomorrow's World, and started to marry dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was writing.

Their signature song became the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling song of 1981, shifting 21 million copies globally. Alongside hits by Gary Numan, Human League and electronic acts, it contributed to paved the way for the electronic music style of the 1980s.

The song was also included on their full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, 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 number two in 1982.

Professional Journey

Fame had its benefits. "I loved being able to purchase my first home, having money and travelling, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball not long ago told with a music magazine.

But it also presented problems. "Newfound wealth meant we could afford substances to relieve the boredom" of press appearances and television shows, Ball said.

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

During the party-filled existence, the duo were also drifting apart, but they managed to produce a second memorable record - the unconventional, edgy and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.

They released another album, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to concentrate on individual endeavors.

Almond went on to have a prosperous individual path, including the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who mixed acid house with ambient pop over a long-lasting collaboration.

Reunions and Final Projects

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

Following a further break, they returned in recent years, issuing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was intended to be a final performance at the large venue on 30 September, that year.

However, they stayed together, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.

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

He added that his time in medical care had shaped the band's sound.

"I had unusual memories when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on pain medication," he explained to a publication.

"The new songs are a electronic representation of the noises in my mind from that time.

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

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