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The talented musician, one half of the pioneering 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.

Alongside singer Marc Almond, the team achieved a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in 1984, and their debut album their initial full-length release is considered a classic of electronic music.

He subsequently founded the pioneering techno group The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.

Ball passed away peacefully in his rest at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in the Thames-side town.

Recent Health Challenges

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

"I ended up damage myself significantly," he commented in 2023. "I broke spinal bones in my spine and fractured about five ribs and fractured my arm."

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

Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits mentally" over the warmer months, as he was developing a fresh record with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is scheduled for release next year.

"He was focused and so happy with the latest project that we actually finished only a short time ago," said the vocalist in a heartfelt message.

"It's truly heartbreaking as 2026 was all set to be such an positive time for him, and I find comfort from the knowledge that he heard the completed album and believed that it was a masterpiece."

Tributes

Almond referred to his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", stating: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our legacy.

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

Richard Norris from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".

"Forming a duo with someone is distinct from being in a band, the bond is incredibly close," he continued.

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

Formative Years

Brought into the world into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months of age.

He was raised in Blackpool with his new family his caregivers, who altered his first name from his birth name to David, alongside his sibling his sister, who was similarly welcomed.

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

Musical Partnership

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

Ball had developed a interest with electronic instruments after viewing the band Kraftwerk perform on a television program Tomorrow's World, and started to marry moody electronic sounds to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.

Their signature song became the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling song of the early 80s, selling millions of copies globally. Alongside successful tracks by Gary Numan, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it contributed to paved the path for the electronic music style of the 1980s.

The song was also included on their full-length debut, their initial LP, which spawned two further top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.

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

Career Highlights

Fame had its upsides. "I loved being able to afford my initial property, having money and exploring, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball recently told with a publication.

But it also presented challenges. "Sudden riches allowed we could purchase substances to relieve the monotony" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball said.

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

Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the pair were also drifting apart, but they succeeded to produce a follow-up memorable record - the unconventional, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.

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

Almond proceeded to have a prosperous individual path, including the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who combined acid house with melodic sounds over a long-lasting partnership.

Later Work and Comebacks

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

After a further break, they returned in 2018, issuing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was intended to be a farewell show at the O2 Arena on September 30, that year.

Yet, they stayed active, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.

Ball lately described the band's upcoming release as a tribute to the New York club scene they visited while making their initial records.

He added that his period in hospital had shaped the band's sound.

"I had strange recollections when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a music magazine.

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

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

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