The talented musician, a key member of the pioneering 1980s electronic music duo 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' Tainted Love in 1984, and their debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a seminal work of synth-pop.
He later founded the pioneering techno group The Grid, who secured chart success with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball died peacefully in his rest at his home in London on October 22, only a short time after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
During that show, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, following a spate of ill-health.
"I managed to injure myself significantly," he commented in a recent interview. "I broke spinal bones in my back and cracked about five ribs and fractured my wrist."
After contracting pneumonia and developing blood poisoning, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "high spirits mentally" during the summer, as he was developing a new album with Almond, called Danceteria, which is set for publication in the coming year.
"He was concentrated and so happy with the new album that we actually completed only a few days ago," said the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's truly heartbreaking as 2026 was all set to be such an uplifting year for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he listened to the finished record and believed that it was a masterpiece."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond referred to his bandmate as "an exceptionally talented creative mastermind", adding: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.
"Thank you Dave for being an significant part of my existence and for the music you gave me. I couldn't be where I am without you."
Richard Norris from The Grid, also paid tribute, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".
"Forming a duo with someone is different from joining a group, the connection is incredibly close," he added.
"That was the case with us. We experienced so many remarkable, incredible, memorable moments together. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Born into a single-parent household in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months old.
He grew up 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 encountered Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both learning art. Inspired by a shared love of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and quickly produced an extended play.
Musical Partnership
The duo were an distinctive combination: Ball was the reserved technician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all glitter and eye-liner; but they attained a unique creative synergy.
Ball had developed a fascination with synthesizers after watching the band Kraftwerk perform on a television science show Tomorrow's World, and started to combine moody electronic sounds to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second most popular single of the early 80s, selling 21 million copies worldwide. Together with hits by other artists, Human League and Ultravox, it contributed to cleared the way 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 continued the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at the second position in the following year.
Professional Journey
Success had its upsides. "I loved being able to purchase my first home, having money and travelling, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball recently shared with a publication.
But it also presented challenges. "Sudden riches allowed we could purchase newfound drugs to relieve the monotony" of press appearances and television shows, Ball explained.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it applies for so many bands."
Amidst the party-filled existence, the pair were also drifting apart, but they succeeded to produce a second memorable record - the unconventional, edgy and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out one more album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to focus on other projects.
Almond proceeded to have a prosperous solo career, including the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who combined dance music with melodic sounds over a enduring partnership.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, releasing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further hiatus, they returned in recent years, releasing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was intended to be a farewell show at the large venue on 30 September, 2018.
However, they stayed active, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic restrictions.
Ball lately described the band's new album as a tribute to the New York club scene they visited while making their first two albums.
He added that his period in hospital had shaped the band's sound.
"I experienced strange recollections when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on morphine," he told a publication.
"The new songs are a digital reflection of the noises in my head from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences me and Marc got up to in the 1980s."
The final mixes were completed only days before Ball died. It is due for release in the spring of 2026.
