The talented musician, a key member of the innovative 1980s synth-pop 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 later formed the innovative techno group The Grid, who secured chart success with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly in his rest at his home in London on October 22, only a short time after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in the Thames-side town.
Recent Health Challenges
During that show, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a spate of health issues.
"I managed to injure myself significantly," he commented in a recent interview. "I fractured spinal bones in my spine and fractured about multiple ribs and fractured my wrist."
Following contracting pneumonia and suffering from sepsis, he was placed in an induced coma and stayed 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 focused and very pleased with the latest project that we literally completed only a few days ago," stated the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was all set to be such an uplifting year for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he heard the finished record and felt that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond referred to his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", adding: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our body of work.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense part of my existence and for the music you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without you."
Richard Norris from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".
"Forming a partnership with someone is distinct from being in a band, the connection is incredibly close," he added.
"That was the case with us. We went through so many remarkable, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was a year and a half of age.
He grew up in Blackpool with adoptive parents his caregivers, who altered his first name from Paul to David, together with his younger sister Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He encountered Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both learning fine arts. Inspired by a shared love of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and promptly produced an extended play.
Creative Collaboration
The pair were an unusual pairing: Ball was the quiet musician, hunched over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they attained a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a interest with electronic instruments after viewing the band Kraftwerk appear on a television program Tomorrow's World, and began to marry dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was writing.
Their signature song became the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling song of 1981, selling millions of copies worldwide. Together with successful tracks by other artists, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it helped cleared the path for the synth-pop sound of the 80s.
The song was also featured on their full-length debut, their initial LP, which spawned two further high-charting 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.
Professional Journey
Fame had its benefits. "I loved being able to afford my initial property, having money and exploring, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball recently shared with a music magazine.
But it also caused problems. "Sudden riches allowed we could purchase substances to alleviate the boredom" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball said.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it applies for so many musicians."
During the party-filled existence, the duo were also drifting apart, but they succeeded to produce a follow-up classic album - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the group to concentrate on individual endeavors.
Almond proceeded to have a prosperous solo career, including the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed acid house with melodic sounds over a long-lasting collaboration.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, producing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another break, they returned in recent years, releasing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was intended to be a final performance at the O2 Arena on September 30, that year.
Yet, they remained together, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.
Ball recently described the duo's new album as a tribute to the NYC nightlife they visited while recording their initial records.
He noted that his period in hospital had influenced the band's sound.
"I had unusual memories when I was in and out of hospital because I was on pain medication," he explained to a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the sounds in my head from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences me and Marc had in the 1980s."
The final mixes were finished only a short time before Ball passed away. It is due for release in the spring of 2026.
