The talented musician, a key member of the innovative 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the duo 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 regarded as a classic of synth-pop.
He subsequently formed the innovative techno group The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with their 1994 single the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully 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 Henley-on-Thames.
Recent Health Challenges
At that performance, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, following a spate of health issues.
"I managed to damage myself significantly," he commented in 2023. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my back and fractured about multiple ribs and fractured my wrist."
Following contracting a lung infection and suffering from blood poisoning, he was placed in an induced coma and remained in the hospital for seven months.
Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" during the summer, as he was developing a new album with Almond, called Danceteria, which is set for publication next year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we literally finished only a few days ago," said the singer in a heartfelt message.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was all set to be such an positive year for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he listened to the finished record and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond referred to his collaborator as "an exceptionally talented creative mastermind", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our legacy.
"Many thanks Dave for being an immense part of my existence and for the music you gave me. I couldn't be where I am without your influence."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a duo with someone is different from joining a group, the bond is incredibly close," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many extraordinary, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences as a team. 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 Blackpool with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who altered his first name from his birth name to his adopted name, alongside his sibling Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both studying fine arts. Inspired by a shared love of Northern Soul, 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 musician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all glitter and makeup; but they achieved a unique creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a interest with electronic instruments after watching the band Kraftwerk perform on BBC science show a popular series, and started to marry moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Their signature song became the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling song of 1981, shifting 21 million copies globally. Alongside hits by Gary Numan, Human League and Ultravox, it helped cleared the way for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The song was also included 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 separate release, Torch, which peaked at the second position in 1982.
Career Highlights
Success had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my first home, having financial security and travelling, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball recently shared with a publication.
But it also caused problems. "Sudden riches allowed we could purchase substances to relieve the monotony" of press appearances and television shows, Ball explained.
"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it works for so many musicians."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, the pair were also growing distant, but they succeeded to produce a second classic album - the wayward, edgy and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out another album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to focus on other projects.
Almond proceeded to have a prosperous individual path, featuring the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed acid house with ambient pop over a enduring collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, releasing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another hiatus, they returned in recent years, issuing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was supposed to be a final performance at the large venue on September 30, 2018.
However, they remained together, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball lately described the band's upcoming release as a homage to the New York club scene they visited while making their initial records.
He added that his time in medical care had influenced the group's music.
"I had strange recollections when I was in and out of the hospital because I was on morphine," he told a music magazine.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the noises in my mind from those days.
"In parallel, it's about the experiences me and Marc had in the 80s."
The last versions were completed only a short time before Ball died. It is scheduled for launch in the spring of 2026.
