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Dave Ball, one half of the groundbreaking 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.

Alongside singer Marc Almond, the pair achieved a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record their initial full-length release is considered a seminal work of electronic music.

He later founded the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who achieved chart success with their 1994 single the hit Swamp Thing.

Ball died peacefully in his sleep at his home in London on October 22, only a short time after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.

Recent Health Challenges

At that performance, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, following a spate of health issues.

"I managed to damage myself significantly," he commented in 2023. "I fractured spinal bones in my back and fractured about five ribs and broke my wrist."

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

Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits mentally" over the warmer months, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for publication in the coming year.

"He was focused and so happy with the latest project that we actually completed only a short time ago," said the singer in a tribute.

"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was completely planned to be such an uplifting year for him, and I find comfort from the knowledge that he listened to the finished record and felt that it was a masterpiece."

Heartfelt Messages

Almond described his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", adding: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our body of work.

"Thank you Dave for being an immense part of my life and for the songs you created with me. I couldn't be where I am without your influence."

Richard Norris from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".

"Forming a partnership with someone is distinct from joining a band, the connection is incredibly close," he added.

"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many extraordinary, incredible, life-affirming experiences together. Thank you, Dave."

Formative Years

Born into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was a year and a half old.

He grew up in the seaside town with his new family his caregivers, who changed his given name from his birth name to David, alongside his sibling his sister, who was also adopted.

He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both learning fine arts. Fuelled by a mutual passion of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and quickly produced an extended play.

Musical Partnership

The duo were an distinctive combination: Ball was the reserved musician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all glitter and eye-liner; but they attained a rare musical alchemy.

Ball had developed a fascination with electronic instruments after viewing Kraftwerk perform on a television science show a popular series, and began to marry moody electronic sounds to the catchy tunes Almond was writing.

Their signature song became the UK's second most popular song of 1981, shifting millions of units worldwide. Together with hits by other artists, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it helped cleared the way for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.

The song was also featured on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two further top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.

They followed the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at number two in the following year.

Professional Journey

Fame had its upsides. "I loved being able to afford my first home, having financial security and exploring, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago shared with a music magazine.

But it also presented challenges. "Newfound wealth meant we could afford substances to relieve the boredom" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball explained.

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

Amidst the party-filled existence, the duo were also drifting apart, but they managed to produce a second classic album - the wayward, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.

They put out another album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to concentrate on individual endeavors.

Almond proceeded to have a prosperous individual path, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who combined dance music with ambient pop over a enduring collaboration.

Reunions and Final Projects

Soft Cell reunited in 2001, releasing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.

After a further break, 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 O2 Arena on September 30, that year.

However, they stayed together, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.

Ball lately described the band's upcoming release as a homage to the NYC nightlife they visited while recording their first two albums.

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

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

"The new songs are a electronic representation of the sounds in my mind from those days.

"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences we had in the 1980s."

The final mixes were finished only a short time before Ball died. It is due for release in Spring 2026.