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

Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the duo scored a global success with their version of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in 1984, and their debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a seminal work of synth-pop.

He later founded the innovative techno group The Grid, who achieved chart success with 1994's Swamp Thing.

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

Health Struggles

During that performance, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, following a spate of ill-health.

"I ended up damage myself significantly," he commented in 2023. "I broke spinal bones in my spine and cracked about five ribs and broke my wrist."

After contracting a lung infection and suffering from sepsis, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in hospital for seven months.

Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" over the summer, as he was developing a new album with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for publication in the coming year.

"He was concentrated and so happy with the new album that we actually finished only a short time ago," said the singer in a heartfelt message.

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

Tributes

Almond described his bandmate as "an exceptionally talented musical genius", stating: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.

"Many thanks Dave for being an significant aspect of my life and for the music you created with 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 connection is incredibly close," he continued.

"That was the case with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences as a team. Thank you, Dave."

Formative Years

Born into a single-parent household 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 Paul to his adopted name, alongside his younger sister his sister, who was similarly welcomed.

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

Musical Partnership

The duo were an distinctive combination: Ball was the reserved technician, hunched over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they attained a rare creative synergy.

Ball had developed a interest with synthesizers after viewing the band Kraftwerk appear on BBC science show Tomorrow's World, and started to combine dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.

Tainted Love became the UK's second biggest-selling single of the early 80s, selling millions of copies globally. Together with hits by other artists, Human League and electronic acts, it helped cleared the path for the electronic music style of the 1980s.

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

They continued the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at the second position in the following year.

Career Highlights

Success had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to afford my initial property, having money and exploring, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball recently told with a music magazine.

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

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

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

They put out another LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the group to focus on other projects.

Almond proceeded to have a prosperous solo career, featuring the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed dance music with ambient pop over a long-lasting collaboration.

Later Work and Comebacks

Soft Cell reunited in 2001, producing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.

Following a further break, they reappeared in 2018, releasing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was supposed to be a farewell show at the large venue on September 30, that year.

Yet, they remained active, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.

Ball recently characterized the duo's upcoming release as a tribute to the NYC nightlife they frequented while recording their first two albums.

He added that his period in hospital had influenced the band's sound.

"I had strange recollections 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.

"In parallel, it's about the times we had in the 1980s."

The final mixes were finished only days before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for launch in the spring of 2026.