The talented musician, one half of the pioneering 1980s synth-pop duo Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the team achieved a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in 1984, and their first record their initial full-length release is regarded as a classic of synth-pop.
He later founded the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully in his sleep at his home in London on October 22, just weeks after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
During that performance, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a spate of ill-health.
"I managed to damage myself quite a bit," he stated in 2023. "I fractured spinal bones in my spine and cracked about multiple ribs and broke my arm."
After contracting a lung infection and developing sepsis, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and remained in the hospital for seven months.
Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place mentally" over 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 very pleased with the new album that we actually finished only a short time ago," said the vocalist in a heartfelt message.
"It's so sad as 2026 was completely planned to be such an uplifting year for him, and I find comfort from the knowledge 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", stating: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our body of work.
"Many thanks Dave for being an significant aspect of my life and for the music you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without you."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".
"Forming a duo with someone is distinct from being in a band, the connection is incredibly close," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many extraordinary, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences as a team. Many thanks, Dave."
Formative Years
Born into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half old.
He grew up in Blackpool with adoptive parents his caregivers, who altered his first name from his birth name to David, together with his sibling Susan, who was also adopted.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both learning art. Fuelled by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they established Soft Cell the same year, and quickly produced an extended play.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the quiet technician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all glitter and eye-liner; but they attained a rare musical alchemy.
Ball had developed a fascination with synthesizers after viewing the band Kraftwerk appear on a television program a popular series, and started to marry moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second most popular song of the early 80s, shifting millions of copies globally. Together with successful tracks by other artists, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it helped paved the path for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The track was also included on their full-length debut, their initial LP, which produced two further high-charting hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the record up with the separate release, Torch, which peaked at the second position in 1982.
Professional Journey
Fame had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my initial property, having money and exploring, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago told with a music magazine.
But it also caused challenges. "Sudden riches allowed we could afford newfound drugs to relieve the boredom" of press appearances and television shows, Ball said.
"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 party-filled existence, the duo were also drifting apart, but they succeeded to produce a second memorable record - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out one more LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to concentrate on other projects.
Almond went on to have a prosperous solo career, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who combined acid house with melodic sounds over a long-lasting partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, producing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further break, they returned in 2018, issuing the original singles 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 2020 Covid lockdown.
Ball recently described the duo's upcoming release as a homage to the NYC nightlife they visited while recording their initial records.
He noted that his period in medical care had shaped the group's music.
"I had strange recollections when I was in and out of the hospital because I was on morphine," he told a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the noises in my mind from those days.
"In parallel, it's about the times we had in the 1980s."
The final mixes were finished only days before Ball died. It is due for launch in Spring 2026.
