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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 vocalist Marc Almond, the team scored a global success with their version of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in 1984, and their debut album their initial full-length release is considered a seminal work of electronic music.

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

Ball died calmly in his sleep at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in the Thames-side town.

Recent Health Challenges

During that performance, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a period of health issues.

"I ended up damage myself significantly," he commented in a recent interview. "I broke spinal bones in my back and cracked about multiple ribs and fractured my wrist."

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

However, he had been in "a great place emotionally" over the warmer months, as he worked on a new album with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is set for release in the coming year.

"He was concentrated and so happy with the new album that we actually finished only a few days ago," stated the singer in a tribute.

"It's truly heartbreaking as 2026 was all set to be such an uplifting year for him, and I find comfort from the fact that he listened to the finished record and believed that it was a masterpiece."

Tributes

Almond referred to his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", stating: "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 part of my life and for the music you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without your influence."

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

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

"That was the case with us. We experienced so many remarkable, incredible, life-affirming moments together. Thank you, Dave."

Formative Years

Born into a single-parent household in the city of Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was a year and a half of age.

He grew up in the seaside town with adoptive parents his caregivers, who changed his given name from his birth name to his adopted name, together with his sibling Susan, who was similarly welcomed.

He met Almond at an art college in the late 70s, where they were both learning art. Fuelled by a mutual passion of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the very year, and promptly recorded an extended play.

Musical Partnership

The duo were an unusual pairing: Ball was the quiet technician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all sparkle and makeup; but they achieved a rare creative synergy.

Ball had developed a fascination with synthesizers after watching the band Kraftwerk appear on a television program a popular series, and began to marry dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.

Their signature song became the UK's second biggest-selling single of the early 80s, selling 21 million units globally. Alongside hits by other artists, Human League and Ultravox, it contributed to paved the way for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.

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

They continued the album up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at the second position in 1982.

Professional Journey

Success had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to afford my first home, having money and travelling, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball recently shared with a music magazine.

But it also presented challenges. "Newfound wealth allowed we could afford substances to alleviate the boredom" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball said.

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

Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also drifting apart, but they managed to create a second memorable record - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.

They put out another album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to concentrate on individual endeavors.

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

Later Work and Comebacks

Soft Cell came back together in 2001, releasing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.

After another hiatus, they returned in recent years, issuing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was intended to be a final performance at the large venue on September 30, that year.

However, they stayed active, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.

Ball lately described the duo's new album as a tribute to the NYC nightlife they frequented while making their first two albums.

He added that his period in hospital had influenced the group's music.

"I experienced strange recollections when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on pain medication," he told a publication.

"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the sounds in my mind from those days.

"Simultaneously, it's about the times me and Marc had in the 1980s."

The final mixes were completed only a short time before Ball passed away. It is due for launch in the spring of 2026.