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

Together with 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 debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a seminal work of synth-pop.

He subsequently founded the innovative techno group The Grid, who achieved chart success with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.

Ball passed away calmly in his rest at his home in London on October 22, only a short time after playing 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 wheelchair, as he had for the previous couple of years, following a spate of ill-health.

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

Following catching pneumonia and suffering from blood poisoning, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and remained in the hospital for seven months.

However, he had been in "high spirits mentally" during the warmer months, as he worked on a new album with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication next year.

"He was focused and very pleased with the latest project that we actually completed only a few days ago," said the singer in a heartfelt message.

"It's truly heartbreaking as 2026 was all set to be such an uplifting time for him, and I find comfort from the fact that he heard the finished record and believed that it was a great piece of work."

Heartfelt Messages

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

"Thank you Dave for being an significant aspect of my existence and for the music you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without you."

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

"Forming a duo with someone is different from joining a band, the bond is incredibly close," he added.

"That was the case with us. We experienced so many extraordinary, extraordinary, life-affirming moments as a team. Many thanks, Dave."

Formative Years

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

He grew up in Blackpool with his new family his caregivers, who changed his first name from Paul to David, together with his younger sister Susan, who was also adopted.

He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both studying fine arts. Fuelled by a mutual passion of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the very year, and quickly produced an extended play.

Creative Collaboration

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

Ball had developed a fascination with synthesizers after watching the band Kraftwerk appear on BBC program a popular series, and started to marry moody electronic sounds to the catchy tunes Almond was writing.

Tainted Love became the UK's second biggest-selling song of 1981, selling 21 million units worldwide. Alongside successful tracks by Gary Numan, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it contributed to paved the path for the electronic music style of the 80s.

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

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

Professional Journey

Success had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to afford my first home, having financial security and travelling, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago told with a publication.

But it also caused problems. "Newfound wealth allowed we could purchase substances to relieve the monotony" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball explained.

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

Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the pair were also growing distant, but they succeeded to produce a follow-up classic album - the wayward, edgy and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.

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

Almond proceeded to have a prosperous solo career, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed acid house with ambient pop over a long-lasting partnership.

Later Work and Comebacks

Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, releasing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.

Following another hiatus, they reappeared in recent years, releasing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was supposed to be a farewell show at the large venue on 30 September, that year.

Yet, they stayed active, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic restrictions.

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 period in medical care had shaped 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 music magazine.

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

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

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