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

Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the duo achieved a worldwide hit with their version 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 subsequently founded the innovative electronic act The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.

Ball passed away calmly in his rest at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.

Recent Health Challenges

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

"I managed to damage myself significantly," he stated in a recent interview. "I broke spinal bones in my back and fractured about multiple ribs and fractured my wrist."

After contracting pneumonia and suffering from sepsis, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in the hospital for seven months.

However, he had been in "a great place emotionally" during the warmer months, as he was developing a new album with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is set for release next year.

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

"It's so sad as next year was all set to be such an positive year for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he heard the finished record and believed that it was a masterpiece."

Tributes

Almond referred to his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", adding: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.

"Thank you Dave for being an significant aspect of my existence and for the songs you gave me. I wouldn't be where I am without your influence."

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

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

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

Formative Years

Brought into the world into a one-parent family in the city of 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 given 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 the late 70s, where they were both studying art. Inspired by a shared love of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and promptly recorded an extended play.

Creative Collaboration

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

Ball had cultivated a fascination with electronic instruments after viewing Kraftwerk perform on a television science show a popular series, and began to marry dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.

Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second most popular song of the early 80s, shifting 21 million units globally. Together with hits by Gary Numan, Human League and Ultravox, it helped paved the way for the synth-pop sound of the 80s.

The track was also featured on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which spawned two additional top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.

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

Professional Journey

Fame had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my initial property, having money and exploring, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball not long ago shared with a publication.

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

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

Amidst the party-filled existence, the duo were also growing distant, but they succeeded to produce a second memorable record - the wayward, edgy and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.

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

Almond went on to have a successful 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 melodic sounds over a enduring collaboration.

Reunions and Final Projects

Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, producing the Top 40 record Cruelty Without Beauty.

Following another hiatus, they reappeared in recent years, issuing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was intended to be a farewell show at the O2 Arena on 30 September, that year.

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

Ball recently described the band's upcoming release as a homage to the New York club scene they frequented while recording their first two albums.

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

"I experienced strange recollections when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on morphine," he told a music magazine.

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

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

The last versions were finished only days before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for release in the spring of 2026.