The talented musician, a key member of the groundbreaking 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the pair achieved a global success with their version of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a seminal work of synth-pop.
He subsequently founded the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball died peacefully in his rest at his residence in London on October 22, just weeks after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.
Health Struggles
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 commented in 2023. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my back and cracked about five ribs and fractured my arm."
After contracting a lung infection and developing blood poisoning, he was put in an induced coma and remained in hospital for seven months.
Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" during the warmer months, as he worked on a new album with Almond, called Danceteria, which is set for publication in the coming year.
"He was concentrated and so happy with the latest project that we actually finished only a few days ago," stated the vocalist in a heartfelt message.
"It's so sad as next year was completely planned to be such an uplifting year for him, and I find comfort from the fact that he listened to the completed album and felt that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond described his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our legacy.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense part of my existence and for the music you created with me. I couldn't be where I am without your influence."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a duo with someone is distinct from joining a group, the bond is very tight," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many extraordinary, extraordinary, memorable experiences together. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Born into a single-parent household in the city of Chester in the late 50s, Ball was given up for adoption when he was a year and a half old.
He was raised in Blackpool with his new family his caregivers, who changed his first name from Paul to David, together with his sibling Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both studying art. Fuelled by a shared love of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the very year, and quickly recorded an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The duo were an unusual pairing: Ball was the quiet musician, hunched over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all sparkle and makeup; but they attained a rare musical alchemy.
Ball had developed a fascination with synthesizers after viewing the band Kraftwerk appear on a television science show a popular series, and started to combine dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Their signature song became the UK's second biggest-selling song of the early 80s, selling millions of units worldwide. Together with hits by other artists, Human League and electronic acts, it helped paved the way for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The song was also featured on their full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which spawned two additional high-charting hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the record up with the separate release, Torch, which peaked at number two in the following year.
Career Highlights
Fame had its upsides. "I loved being able to afford my first home, having financial security and travelling, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball recently told with a publication.
But it also presented problems. "Sudden riches meant we could afford 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 bands."
During the party-filled existence, the pair were also drifting apart, but they managed to produce a second classic album - the wayward, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released another LP, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to focus on individual endeavors.
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 mixed dance music with melodic sounds over a long-lasting partnership.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell came back together in 2001, producing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further hiatus, they reappeared in recent years, releasing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was intended to be a final performance at the O2 Arena on 30 September, that year.
However, they stayed together, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.
Ball lately described the band's new album as a homage to the New York club scene they visited while recording their first two albums.
He added that his period in medical care had shaped the group's music.
"I had strange recollections when I was in and out of hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the sounds in my head from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times me and Marc got up to in the 1980s."
The last versions were completed only a short time before Ball died. It is due for release in the spring of 2026.
