The talented musician, one half of the pioneering 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Alongside singer Marc Almond, the pair achieved a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a classic of synth-pop.
He later founded the innovative techno group The Grid, who secured 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 playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.
Health Struggles
At that show, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a period of ill-health.
"I managed to injure myself quite a bit," he stated in 2023. "I broke lower vertebrae in my spine and fractured about multiple ribs and fractured my wrist."
After catching a lung infection and developing blood poisoning, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "high spirits mentally" over the warmer months, as he was developing a fresh record with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication next year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we actually completed only a short time ago," said 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 completed album and felt that it was a masterpiece."
Tributes
Almond referred to his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", adding: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm very proud 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 couldn't be where I am without you."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "constant humor" and "steadfast support".
"Being in a partnership with someone is distinct from being in a group, the connection is very tight," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many extraordinary, incredible, life-affirming experiences together. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half old.
He grew up in the seaside town with adoptive parents his caregivers, who changed his first name from his birth name to his adopted name, alongside his younger sister his sister, who was similarly welcomed.
He encountered Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both learning fine arts. Fuelled by a mutual passion of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the same year, and promptly recorded an EP.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an distinctive combination: Ball was the reserved musician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all glitter and makeup; but they achieved a rare creative synergy.
Ball had developed a interest with synthesizers after watching the band Kraftwerk perform on BBC science show a popular series, and started to combine moody electronic sounds to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.
Their signature song became the UK's second biggest-selling single of the early 80s, selling millions of copies globally. Alongside hits by other artists, Human League and electronic acts, it contributed to cleared the path for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The song was also featured on their first album, their initial LP, which spawned two further high-charting singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the record up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at the second position in the following year.
Career Highlights
Fame had its upsides. "I loved being able to afford my first home, having money and exploring, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago told with a music magazine.
But it also caused challenges. "Sudden riches meant we could purchase newfound drugs to alleviate the monotony" of press appearances and television shows, Ball explained.
"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a good reason, because it applies for so many bands."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, the pair were also growing distant, but they succeeded to produce a follow-up classic album - the unconventional, edgy and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out one more album, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to concentrate on individual endeavors.
Almond went on to have a prosperous individual path, including the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who combined dance music with melodic sounds over a long-lasting partnership.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, releasing the Top 40 record Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further break, 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 farewell show at the O2 Arena on 30 September, 2018.
However, they stayed active, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball recently characterized the duo's upcoming release as a tribute to the NYC nightlife they frequented while making their initial records.
He noted that his time in medical care 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 explained to a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the noises in my head from that time.
"In parallel, it's about the times me and Marc had in the 1980s."
The last versions were finished only days before Ball passed away. It is due for launch in the spring of 2026.
