The talented musician, one half of the innovative 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Alongside singer 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 classic of electronic music.
He later founded the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with their 1994 single the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully in his sleep at his residence in London on October 22, only a short time after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Recent Health Challenges
During that show, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a spate of health issues.
"I ended up damage myself significantly," he commented in a recent interview. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my back and cracked about five ribs and fractured my arm."
After contracting a lung infection and suffering from blood poisoning, he was placed in an induced coma and stayed in hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "a great place mentally" during the warmer months, as he was developing a fresh record with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for publication in the coming year.
"He was concentrated and so happy with the latest project that we literally completed only a few days ago," stated the singer in a heartfelt message.
"It's so sad as 2026 was completely planned to be such an uplifting year for him, and I find comfort from the knowledge that he heard the finished record and believed that it was a masterpiece."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond described his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", 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 immense part of my existence and for the music you gave me. I couldn't be where I am without you."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Being in a partnership with someone is distinct from being in a band, the connection is incredibly close," he continued.
"That was the case with us. We experienced so many remarkable, incredible, memorable experiences as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Born into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in 1959, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months old.
He was raised in the seaside town with adoptive parents his caregivers, who altered his first name from Paul to David, alongside his younger sister his sister, who was also adopted.
He met Almond at an art college in the late 70s, where they were both studying fine arts. Fuelled by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and promptly recorded an EP.
Musical Partnership
The duo were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the reserved musician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they achieved a rare musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a interest with electronic instruments after viewing the band Kraftwerk perform on BBC program a popular series, and started to combine moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second biggest-selling single of 1981, shifting 21 million copies worldwide. Together with successful tracks by Gary Numan, Human League and Ultravox, it contributed to cleared the path for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The track was also featured on their first album, their initial LP, which produced two additional high-charting singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at number two in the following year.
Professional Journey
Success had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to afford my first home, having money and travelling, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago told with a publication.
But it also caused problems. "Sudden riches allowed we could afford newfound drugs to alleviate the boredom" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball explained.
"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 hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also growing distant, but they managed to create a follow-up classic album - the wayward, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out one more LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the group to focus on other projects.
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 acid house with melodic sounds over a long-lasting partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell came back together in 2001, producing the Top 40 record Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another break, they returned in 2018, releasing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was intended to be a farewell show at the O2 Arena on September 30, 2018.
However, they remained together, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball recently characterized the duo's new album as a homage to the NYC nightlife they visited while making their first two albums.
He noted that his time in hospital had influenced the band's sound.
"I had unusual memories when I was in and out of hospital because I was on morphine," he told a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the noises in my mind from that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences me and Marc got up to in the 1980s."
The final mixes were finished only days before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for release in the spring of 2026.
