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The talented musician, a key member of the groundbreaking 1980s synth-pop band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.

Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the duo scored a worldwide hit with their version of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album their initial full-length release is regarded as a seminal work of synth-pop.

He subsequently founded the pioneering techno group The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with 1994's Swamp Thing.

Ball passed away peacefully in his rest at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.

Health Struggles

During that show, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, following a period of ill-health.

"I managed to injure myself quite a bit," he commented in 2023. "I fractured spinal bones in my back and cracked about five ribs and broke my wrist."

After catching pneumonia and suffering from sepsis, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in the hospital for half a year.

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 scheduled for publication in the coming year.

"He was focused and so happy with the new album that we literally completed only a short time ago," stated the singer in a tribute.

"It's truly heartbreaking as 2026 was completely planned to be such an positive year for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he heard the finished record and believed that it was a masterpiece."

Heartfelt Messages

Almond described his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.

"Thank you Dave for being an significant aspect of my existence and for the music you gave me. I couldn't be where I am without your influence."

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

"Being in a partnership with someone is different from joining a group, the bond is very tight," he added.

"That was the case with us. We went through so many extraordinary, incredible, life-affirming experiences together. Thank you, Dave."

Formative Years

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

He grew up in Blackpool with adoptive parents his caregivers, who changed his given name from his birth name to his adopted name, together with his younger sister his sister, who was similarly welcomed.

He encountered Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both studying art. Fuelled by a shared love of Northern Soul, they established Soft Cell the very year, and promptly produced an extended play.

Creative Collaboration

The duo were an distinctive combination: Ball was the reserved technician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all sparkle and makeup; but they attained a unique musical alchemy.

Ball had cultivated a interest with electronic instruments after watching the band Kraftwerk perform on a television program Tomorrow's World, and started to combine dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.

Their signature song became the United Kingdom's second most popular song of 1981, shifting 21 million copies globally. Together with hits by Gary Numan, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it contributed to paved the way for the electronic music style of the 80s.

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

They continued the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at the second position in 1982.

Career Highlights

Fame had its upsides. "I loved being able to purchase my first home, having financial security and travelling, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball recently told with a music magazine.

But it also caused problems. "Sudden riches allowed we could purchase newfound drugs to relieve the boredom" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball said.

"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a good reason, because it works for so many musicians."

Amidst the party-filled existence, the pair were also growing distant, but they managed to produce a follow-up memorable record - the unconventional, edgy and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.

They put out one more LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to focus on individual endeavors.

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 mixed dance music with melodic sounds over a enduring collaboration.

Reunions and Final Projects

Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, releasing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.

After another break, they reappeared in recent years, releasing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was intended to be a final performance at the O2 Arena on 30 September, 2018.

Yet, they stayed active, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.

Ball lately described the duo's new album as a tribute to the New York club scene they visited while making their first two albums.

He noted that his time in medical care had shaped the group's music.

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

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

"Simultaneously, it's about the times we got up to in the 1980s."

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