The talented musician, one half of the innovative 1980s synth-pop band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the pair scored a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in 1984, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a seminal work of electronic music.
He later founded the innovative techno group The Grid, who secured chart success with their 1994 single the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball died calmly in his sleep 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
At that show, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a period of health issues.
"I ended up damage myself significantly," he stated in 2023. "I broke spinal bones in my spine and fractured about five ribs and fractured my wrist."
Following catching a lung infection and suffering from blood poisoning, he was put in an induced coma and remained in the hospital for half a year.
Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place mentally" during the warmer months, as he worked on a new album with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is scheduled for release in the coming year.
"He was concentrated and very pleased with the latest project that we actually completed only a short time ago," stated the singer in a heartfelt message.
"It's so sad as next year was completely planned to be such an uplifting time for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he heard the finished record and felt that it was a masterpiece."
Tributes
Almond described his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", stating: "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."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "steadfast support".
"Being in a partnership with someone is different from being in a band, the connection is very tight," he added.
"That was the case with us. We experienced so many extraordinary, incredible, memorable experiences as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in 1959, 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 his birth name to his adopted name, together with his younger sister Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both learning fine arts. Inspired by a shared love of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and quickly recorded an extended play.
Creative Collaboration
The pair were an distinctive combination: Ball was the reserved technician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all sparkle and makeup; but they achieved a rare musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with synthesizers after viewing the band Kraftwerk appear on BBC science show a popular series, and began to combine moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling song of the early 80s, selling 21 million units worldwide. Alongside hits by other artists, Human League and electronic acts, it helped cleared the way for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The song was also included on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two additional high-charting singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the album up with the separate release, Torch, which peaked at number two in 1982.
Professional Journey
Fame had its upsides. "I loved being able to purchase my initial property, having financial security and travelling, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball recently shared with a publication.
But it also presented challenges. "Newfound wealth meant we could purchase substances to relieve the boredom" of media interviews and television shows, Ball said.
"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it applies for so many musicians."
Amidst the party-filled existence, the duo were also growing distant, but they succeeded to produce a second memorable record - the unconventional, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released another LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to concentrate on individual endeavors.
Almond proceeded to have a successful individual path, including the top 10 hit 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.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, releasing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
After a further hiatus, they returned in 2018, releasing 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, 2018.
Yet, they stayed together, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball recently described the duo'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 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 explained to a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the sounds in my mind from that time.
"In parallel, it's about the experiences me and Marc got up to in the 1980s."
The final mixes were finished only a short time before Ball passed away. It is due for launch in the spring of 2026.