The talented musician, one half of the groundbreaking 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died 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 the mid-80s, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered 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 peacefully in his sleep at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in the Thames-side town.
Recent Health Challenges
At that performance, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, after a period of ill-health.
"I managed to damage myself significantly," he stated in 2023. "I broke lower vertebrae in my spine and fractured about multiple ribs and fractured my arm."
Following contracting pneumonia and suffering from blood poisoning, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and remained in hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "high spirits mentally" during the warmer months, as he was developing a fresh record with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication in the coming year.
"He was concentrated and very pleased with the latest project that we literally finished only a few days ago," stated the singer in a heartfelt message.
"It's truly heartbreaking as 2026 was completely planned to be such an uplifting time for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he heard the completed album and felt that it was a masterpiece."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond referred to his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", stating: "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 aspect of my life and for the music you gave me. I wouldn't be where I am without you."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".
"Forming a partnership with someone is different from being in a group, the bond is very tight," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many extraordinary, incredible, memorable moments as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months of age.
He was raised in the seaside town with adoptive parents his caregivers, who changed his first name from his birth name to David, together with his younger sister his sister, who was similarly welcomed.
He encountered Almond at an art college in the late 70s, where they were both studying fine arts. Inspired by a mutual passion of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the same year, and quickly produced an extended play.
Creative Collaboration
The duo were an unusual combination: Ball was the reserved musician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they attained a unique creative synergy.
Ball had developed a fascination with synthesizers after viewing Kraftwerk perform on BBC science show Tomorrow's World, and started to combine dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was writing.
Their signature song became the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling single of 1981, selling millions of units worldwide. Alongside hits by other artists, Human League and Ultravox, it helped paved the way for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The track was also included on their first album, their initial LP, which spawned two further top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at the second position in 1982.
Career Highlights
Success 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 allowed we could purchase substances to relieve the monotony" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I know that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a good reason, because it applies for so many musicians."
During the party-filled existence, the pair were also growing distant, but they managed to produce a follow-up classic album - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to focus on other projects.
Almond went on to have a prosperous individual path, featuring the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who combined dance music with ambient pop over a enduring collaboration.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, releasing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
After another hiatus, they returned in recent years, 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 large venue on 30 September, that year.
However, they stayed active, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic restrictions.
Ball recently characterized the duo's new album as a homage to the New York club scene they visited while recording their initial records.
He added that his period in hospital had shaped the band's sound.
"I had strange recollections when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on pain medication," he explained to a music magazine.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the noises in my mind from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences we got up to in the 80s."
The final mixes were completed only a short time before Ball passed away. It is due for launch in the spring of 2026.
