The talented musician, a key member of the pioneering 1980s synth-pop band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Alongside singer 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 electronic act The Grid, who achieved chart success with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball died calmly in his sleep at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.
Recent Health Challenges
During that show, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, after a period of health issues.
"I ended up injure myself significantly," he commented in 2023. "I broke lower vertebrae in my spine and fractured about multiple ribs and broke my arm."
Following contracting a lung infection and suffering from blood poisoning, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in the hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" during the summer, as he was developing a new album with Almond, called Danceteria, which is set for release next year.
"He was concentrated and so happy with the new album that we literally completed only a short time ago," said the singer in a tribute.
"It's so sad as 2026 was completely planned to be such an uplifting year for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he heard the finished record and believed that it was a masterpiece."
Tributes
Almond described his bandmate as "an exceptionally talented musical genius", stating: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our body of work.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense aspect of my life and for the songs you gave me. I wouldn't be where I am without you."
Richard Norris from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".
"Being in a duo with someone is different from being in a group, the bond is incredibly close," he continued.
"That was the case with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences together. Thank you, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half of age.
He was raised in Blackpool with adoptive parents his caregivers, who changed his first name from Paul to David, alongside his sibling his sister, who was also adopted.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both learning art. Fuelled by a mutual passion of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the same year, and quickly recorded an extended play.
Musical Partnership
The duo were an unusual pairing: Ball was the quiet musician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a flamboyant showman, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they achieved a rare creative synergy.
Ball had developed a fascination with synthesizers after watching the band Kraftwerk appear on a television science show a popular series, and began to combine moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second most popular song of the early 80s, selling 21 million units worldwide. Together with successful tracks by Gary Numan, Human League and Ultravox, it helped paved the path for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The track was also featured on their first album, their initial LP, which spawned two further top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at the second position in 1982.
Professional Journey
Fame had its upsides. "I loved being able to purchase my first home, having financial security and travelling, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball recently shared with a publication.
But it also presented problems. "Newfound wealth allowed we could afford newfound drugs to alleviate the boredom" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball said.
"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a truism for a good reason, because it works for so many bands."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also growing distant, but they succeeded to produce a follow-up classic album - the wayward, edgy and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out one more album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the group to concentrate 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 created The Grid, who combined acid house with ambient pop over a long-lasting collaboration.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, producing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
After a further hiatus, they reappeared in recent years, releasing 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, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic restrictions.
Ball recently described the band's upcoming release as a tribute to the New York club scene they visited while recording their initial records.
He added that his time in hospital had shaped the group's music.
"I experienced unusual memories when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a music magazine.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the sounds in my head from those days.
"In parallel, it's about the times me and Marc had in the 1980s."
The last versions were finished only days before Ball died. It is due for launch in Spring 2026.
