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The talented musician, one half of the groundbreaking 1980s synth-pop duo Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.

Alongside singer Marc Almond, the pair scored a global success with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record their initial full-length release is considered a seminal work of synth-pop.

He later founded the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who secured chart success with 1994's Swamp Thing.

Ball passed away peacefully in his sleep at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.

Recent Health Challenges

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

"I ended up injure myself quite a bit," he stated in 2023. "I broke spinal bones in my spine and cracked about multiple ribs and fractured my arm."

Following catching a lung infection and developing blood poisoning, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and remained in hospital for half a year.

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

"He was concentrated and so happy with the latest project that we literally completed only a short time ago," stated the vocalist in a heartfelt message.

"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was completely planned to be such an uplifting time for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he listened to the completed album and believed that it was a great piece of work."

Tributes

Almond referred to his collaborator as "an exceptionally talented creative mastermind", stating: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our legacy.

"Thank you Dave for being an significant part of my life and for the music 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 "steadfast support".

"Forming a duo with someone is different from joining a band, the connection is very tight," he continued.

"That was the case with us. We went through so many extraordinary, extraordinary, memorable moments as a team. Many thanks, Dave."

Early Life

Born into a one-parent family in 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 his caregivers, who changed his first name from his birth name to David, together with his younger sister his sister, who was also adopted.

He encountered Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both learning art. Inspired by a shared love of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and quickly produced an EP.

Creative Collaboration

The pair were an unusual combination: Ball was the reserved musician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all glitter and eye-liner; but they achieved a unique creative synergy.

Ball had cultivated a interest with electronic instruments after watching the band Kraftwerk appear on a television program Tomorrow's World, and started to marry moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.

Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second most popular song of the early 80s, shifting millions of copies worldwide. Together with successful tracks by Gary Numan, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it helped cleared the way for the electronic music style of the 80s.

The track was also featured on their full-length debut, their initial LP, which spawned two additional top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.

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

Career Highlights

Fame had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my first home, having money and travelling, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball recently shared with a music magazine.

But it also presented challenges. "Newfound wealth allowed we could afford newfound drugs to alleviate the boredom" of media interviews and television shows, Ball explained.

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

During the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also growing distant, but they managed to create a follow-up 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 dissolving 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 created 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 another break, they returned 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 September 30, that year.

Yet, they remained together, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic restrictions.

Ball recently characterized the band's new album as a tribute to the New York club scene they frequented while recording their first two albums.

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

"I had strange recollections when I was in and out of the hospital because I was on morphine," he told a music magazine.

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

"Simultaneously, it's about the times we had in the 80s."

The final mixes were completed only a short time before Ball passed away. It is due for release in Spring 2026.