The talented musician, a key member of the groundbreaking 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the team scored a global success with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a classic of synth-pop.
He subsequently founded the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly in his rest at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
During that performance, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, after a period of health issues.
"I ended up damage myself significantly," he commented in 2023. "I fractured spinal bones in my spine and cracked about multiple ribs and fractured my wrist."
Following contracting pneumonia and developing blood poisoning, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and remained in the hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "a great place mentally" over the warmer months, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is scheduled for release in the coming year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we literally finished only a short time ago," said the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's so sad as 2026 was completely planned to be such an positive year for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he heard the finished record and believed that it was a masterpiece."
Tributes
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.
"Many thanks Dave for being an immense part of my existence and for the songs 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 "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".
"Being in a duo with someone is different from being in a group, the connection is incredibly close," he continued.
"That was the case with us. We went through so many extraordinary, extraordinary, memorable experiences together. Many thanks, 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 Blackpool with his new family his caregivers, who changed his given name from his birth name to David, together with his younger sister Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both learning fine arts. Inspired by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they established Soft Cell the very year, and quickly recorded an extended play.
Musical Partnership
The duo were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the quiet musician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they attained a unique creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with electronic instruments after viewing Kraftwerk perform on BBC program Tomorrow's World, and began to combine moody electronic sounds to the catchy tunes Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second biggest-selling single of 1981, shifting millions of copies globally. Alongside successful tracks by Gary Numan, Human League and Ultravox, it helped cleared the path for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The song was also featured on their first album, their initial LP, which produced two additional high-charting singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at the second position in the following year.
Professional Journey
Success had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my initial property, having money and travelling, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball recently told with a music magazine.
But it also caused problems. "Sudden riches meant we could purchase substances to alleviate the monotony" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it applies for so many bands."
During the party-filled existence, the pair were also growing distant, but they succeeded to produce a second classic album - the wayward, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to concentrate on individual endeavors.
Almond went on to have a successful solo career, including the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who combined dance music with ambient pop over a long-lasting partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, producing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further break, they reappeared in 2018, issuing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was supposed to be a farewell show at the large venue on September 30, 2018.
Yet, they remained active, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.
Ball lately described the band's upcoming release as a tribute to the NYC nightlife they visited while making their first two albums.
He noted that his period in medical care had influenced the group's music.
"I experienced strange recollections when I was in and out of hospital because I was on pain medication," he told a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the sounds in my head from those days.
"In parallel, it's about the experiences me and Marc had in the 80s."
The final mixes were finished only days before Ball died. It is due for release in Spring 2026.
