The talented musician, one half of the pioneering 1980s synth-pop band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the pair scored a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in 1984, and their debut album their initial full-length release is regarded as a classic of electronic music.
He subsequently founded the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who achieved 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, only a short time after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.
Recent Health Challenges
During that show, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, after a spate of health issues.
"I ended up injure myself significantly," he stated in 2023. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my spine and fractured about five ribs and fractured my wrist."
Following contracting pneumonia and suffering from sepsis, he was placed in an induced coma and stayed in the hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "a great place emotionally" during the summer, as he worked on a new album with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for publication in the coming year.
"He was concentrated and so happy with the new album that we literally finished only a few days ago," stated the vocalist in a heartfelt message.
"It's truly heartbreaking 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 completed album and felt that it was a masterpiece."
Tributes
Almond described his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", adding: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense part of my life and for the music you gave me. I wouldn't be where I am without your influence."
Richard Norris from The Grid, also paid tribute, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".
"Forming a partnership with someone is distinct from joining a band, the bond is incredibly close," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, memorable moments together. Many thanks, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in the city of Chester in the late 50s, Ball was given up for adoption when he was a year and a half of age.
He was raised in the seaside town with adoptive parents his caregivers, who altered his given name from Paul to David, alongside his sibling Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both learning fine arts. Inspired by a shared love of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and promptly recorded an extended play.
Musical Partnership
The duo were an unusual pairing: Ball was the quiet musician, hunched over his synthesizer, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all glitter and eye-liner; but they attained a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had developed a interest with electronic instruments after watching the band Kraftwerk perform on BBC program Tomorrow's World, and started to combine dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second most popular single of the early 80s, selling millions of units worldwide. Alongside hits by other artists, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it helped cleared the path for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The song was also included on their full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two further top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at number two in 1982.
Professional Journey
Fame had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my first home, having financial security and travelling, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago told with a music magazine.
But it also presented problems. "Sudden riches meant we could purchase newfound drugs to alleviate the boredom" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball said.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it applies for so many musicians."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, the pair were also drifting apart, but they succeeded to produce a second memorable record - the unconventional, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released another LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to focus on other projects.
Almond proceeded to have a successful individual path, including the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who mixed acid house with melodic sounds over a enduring collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, releasing the charting album 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 staging what was intended to be a farewell show at the large venue on 30 September, 2018.
Yet, they stayed together, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball recently described the band's new album as a homage to the NYC nightlife they visited while recording their first two albums.
He added that his time in medical care had shaped the band's sound.
"I had unusual memories 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 noises in my mind from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times me and Marc had in the 80s."
The final mixes were finished only a short time before Ball died. It is due for launch in Spring 2026.
