The talented musician, one half of the pioneering 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with singer Marc Almond, the team achieved a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a classic of electronic music.
He subsequently formed the pioneering techno group The Grid, who secured chart success with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly 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 performance, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, after a spate of health issues.
"I managed to injure myself significantly," he stated in 2023. "I fractured spinal bones in my spine and cracked about five ribs and fractured my arm."
Following contracting a lung infection and developing blood poisoning, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and remained in the hospital for half a year.
Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place mentally" during the warmer months, as he worked on a new album with Almond, called Danceteria, which is set for release in the coming year.
"He was concentrated and so happy with the latest project that we literally completed only a short time ago," said the singer in a tribute.
"It's truly heartbreaking as 2026 was completely planned to be such an uplifting time for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he heard the completed album and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond described his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our legacy.
"Many thanks 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, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Being in 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 extraordinary, incredible, memorable experiences as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Born into a single-parent household in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months of age.
He grew up in Blackpool with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his given name from his birth name to his adopted name, together with his younger sister Susan, who was also adopted.
He met Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both studying fine arts. Fuelled by a shared love of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the same year, and promptly recorded an extended play.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an unusual pairing: Ball was the quiet musician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all sparkle and makeup; but they attained a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a interest with synthesizers after watching the band Kraftwerk appear on a television science show a popular series, and started to marry moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Their signature song became the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling single of the early 80s, selling 21 million units worldwide. Together with successful tracks by other artists, Human League and Ultravox, it contributed to cleared the path for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The track was also included on their full-length debut, their initial LP, which produced two further top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the record up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at number two in the following year.
Professional Journey
Fame had its benefits. "I loved being able to afford my initial property, having money and travelling, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball recently shared with a publication.
But it also caused problems. "Newfound wealth allowed we could purchase substances to alleviate the monotony" of press appearances and television shows, Ball said.
"I know that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a good reason, because it applies for so many musicians."
Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the pair were also growing distant, but they managed to produce a second memorable record - the unconventional, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out one more album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to focus on other projects.
Almond proceeded to have a successful solo career, including the chart-topping single 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.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell came back together in 2001, releasing the Top 40 record Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further break, they returned in 2018, issuing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was supposed to be a final performance at the O2 Arena on 30 September, 2018.
Yet, they stayed together, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.
Ball recently characterized the duo's upcoming release as a tribute to the New York club scene they frequented while recording their first two albums.
He noted that his period in hospital had shaped the band's sound.
"I experienced strange recollections when I was in and out of hospital because I was on pain medication," he told a publication.
"The new songs are a digital reflection of the noises in my mind from that time.
"In parallel, it's about the times we had in the 80s."
The final mixes were completed only a short time before Ball died. It is due for release in the spring of 2026.
