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The talented musician, a key member of the pioneering 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.

Alongside singer Marc Almond, the duo scored 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 regarded as a classic of electronic music.

He later founded the innovative techno group The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with 1994's Swamp Thing.

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

Recent Health Challenges

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

"I ended up injure myself quite a bit," he commented in a recent interview. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my spine and cracked about multiple ribs and fractured my wrist."

Following catching pneumonia and developing sepsis, he was placed in an induced coma and stayed in hospital for seven months.

Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place emotionally" during the summer, as he was developing a new album with Almond, called Danceteria, which is set for release in the coming year.

"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we actually finished only a few days ago," said the vocalist in a heartfelt message.

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

Tributes

Almond described his collaborator as "an exceptionally talented musical genius", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our body of work.

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

Richard Norris from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".

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

"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences as a team. Thank you, Dave."

Formative Years

Brought into the world into a single-parent household in Chester in 1959, 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 given name from his birth name to David, together with his sibling his sister, who was also adopted.

He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both studying fine arts. Fuelled by a shared love of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and quickly recorded an extended play.

Creative Collaboration

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

Ball had developed a fascination with synthesizers after viewing Kraftwerk perform on BBC science show Tomorrow's World, and started to marry moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.

Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second most popular single of the early 80s, selling 21 million units worldwide. Together with hits by Gary Numan, Human League and Ultravox, it helped cleared the way for the electronic music style of the 80s.

The track was also included on their first album, their initial LP, which produced two additional top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.

They continued the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at number two in 1982.

Career Highlights

Success had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to afford my initial property, having money and exploring, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball not long ago shared with a music magazine.

But it also presented problems. "Sudden riches allowed we could afford newfound drugs to alleviate the boredom" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball explained.

"I know that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it works for so many musicians."

Amidst the party-filled existence, the duo were also growing distant, but they managed to create a second classic album - the wayward, edgy and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.

They released another LP, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to focus on individual endeavors.

Almond went on to have a successful individual path, including the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who combined acid house with melodic sounds over a enduring partnership.

Reunions and Final Projects

Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, producing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.

After a further break, they returned in recent years, releasing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was supposed to be a final performance at the large venue on September 30, that year.

However, they stayed together, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.

Ball recently described the duo's upcoming release as a homage to the New York club scene they visited while making their initial records.

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

"I experienced unusual memories when I was in and out of hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a publication.

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

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

The last versions were finished only a short time before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for release in Spring 2026.