The talented musician, one half of the groundbreaking 1980s synth-pop band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the team achieved a global success with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in 1984, and their debut album their initial full-length release is regarded as a seminal work of synth-pop.
He later founded the pioneering techno group The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully in his sleep at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in the Thames-side town.
Recent Health Challenges
At that performance, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, after a spate of health issues.
"I managed to injure myself quite a bit," he commented in 2023. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my back and cracked about five ribs and broke my arm."
After catching a lung infection and suffering from blood poisoning, he was placed in an induced coma and remained in the hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "a great place mentally" over the summer, as he was developing a new album with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for release next year.
"He was concentrated and so happy with the latest project that we actually completed only a short time ago," said the singer in a heartfelt message.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was completely planned to be such an positive time for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he heard the completed album and felt that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond described his bandmate as "an exceptionally talented musical genius", adding: "He was the core essence 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 songs you gave me. I couldn't be where I am without your influence."
Richard Norris from The Grid, shared his condolences, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a partnership with someone is different from being in a band, the bond is very tight," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many remarkable, incredible, memorable moments together. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months old.
He was raised in Blackpool with adoptive parents his caregivers, who altered his given name from Paul to David, alongside his younger sister Susan, who was also adopted.
He encountered Almond at an art college in the late 70s, where they were both studying fine arts. Inspired by a shared love of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the same year, and quickly recorded an EP.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an unusual pairing: Ball was the reserved technician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they achieved a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a interest with synthesizers after viewing the band Kraftwerk appear on a television science show a popular series, and started to combine 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 hits by other artists, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it helped paved the path for the synth-pop sound of the 80s.
The track was also included on their first album, their initial LP, which produced two further top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at the second position in the following year.
Professional Journey
Fame had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my first home, having money and travelling, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball recently told with a music magazine.
But it also presented challenges. "Newfound wealth meant we could purchase substances to relieve the monotony" of press appearances and television shows, Ball said.
"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it applies for so many musicians."
Amidst the party-filled existence, the pair were also growing distant, but they managed to create a second memorable record - the wayward, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out one more LP, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to concentrate on other projects.
Almond proceeded to have a successful individual path, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who combined dance music with ambient pop over a enduring collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, producing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
After a further break, they reappeared in recent years, issuing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was intended to be a final performance at the O2 Arena on September 30, that year.
However, they remained together, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.
Ball lately described the duo's new album as a tribute to the NYC nightlife they frequented while recording their initial records.
He noted that his time in medical care had influenced the group's music.
"I experienced 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 digital reflection of the noises in my head from that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times we had in the 1980s."
The last versions were finished only a short time before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for release in the spring of 2026.
