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Dave Ball, a key member of the innovative 1980s synth-pop duo Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.

Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the team achieved a worldwide hit with their version of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album their initial full-length release is considered a seminal work of electronic music.

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

Ball died calmly in his sleep at his residence in London on October 22, only a short time after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.

Health Struggles

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

"I ended up damage myself quite a bit," he commented in a recent interview. "I broke spinal bones in my spine and cracked about multiple ribs and broke my wrist."

Following contracting a lung infection 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 "a great place mentally" over the summer, as he worked on a new album with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is set for release in the coming year.

"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we actually completed only a short time ago," stated the singer in a heartfelt message.

"It's so sad as next year was all set to be such an uplifting year for him, and I find comfort from the fact that he listened to the completed album and felt that it was a great piece of work."

Tributes

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

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

Richard Norris from The Grid, also paid tribute, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".

"Forming a partnership with someone is different from being in a band, the bond is incredibly close," he added.

"That was the case with us. We experienced so many remarkable, incredible, life-affirming moments together. Thank you, Dave."

Formative Years

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

He was raised in the seaside town with adoptive parents Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his given name from Paul to his adopted name, alongside his younger sister his sister, who was similarly welcomed.

He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both learning fine arts. Fuelled by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and quickly produced an EP.

Creative Collaboration

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

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

Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling single of 1981, shifting millions of copies worldwide. Together with successful tracks by Gary Numan, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it contributed to cleared the way for the synth-pop sound of the 80s.

The song was also included on their full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two additional high-charting hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.

They followed the album up with the separate release, Torch, which peaked at the second position in the following year.

Career Highlights

Fame had its upsides. "I loved being able to afford my first home, having money and travelling, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball not long ago told with a publication.

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

"I know that's a common saying, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it works for so many musicians."

During the party-filled existence, the duo were also growing distant, but they succeeded to produce a follow-up classic album - the unconventional, tense 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 proceeded to have a prosperous individual path, including the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed acid house with ambient pop over a long-lasting partnership.

Reunions and Final Projects

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

After another break, they reappeared in 2018, releasing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was intended to be a farewell show at the O2 Arena on 30 September, that year.

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

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

He noted that his period in hospital had influenced the band's sound.

"I had strange recollections when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on morphine," he told a publication.

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

"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences we got up to in the 80s."

The last versions were finished only days before Ball died. It is scheduled for release in the spring of 2026.