The talented musician, a key member of the groundbreaking 1980s synth-pop duo Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Alongside singer Marc Almond, the team scored a global success with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a classic of electronic music.
He subsequently founded the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully in his rest at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after performing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
At that performance, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, following a period of ill-health.
"I managed to injure myself quite a bit," he stated in 2023. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my spine and cracked about multiple ribs and broke my arm."
Following catching pneumonia and suffering from sepsis, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and remained in hospital for seven months.
Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place mentally" during the warmer months, as he worked on a new album with Almond, called Danceteria, which is scheduled for release next year.
"He was concentrated and very pleased with the new album that we literally completed only a short time ago," stated the singer in a tribute.
"It's so sad as next year was completely planned to be such an uplifting year for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he heard the completed album and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond described his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", adding: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our legacy.
"Thank you Dave for being an significant part of my life and for the music you gave me. I wouldn'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".
"Being in a duo with someone is distinct from being in a band, the bond is incredibly close," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, life-affirming moments as a team. Many thanks, Dave."
Formative Years
Born into a one-parent family in Chester in 1959, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half of age.
He grew up in the seaside town with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who altered his given name from his birth name to David, together with his sibling Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at an art college in the late 70s, where they were both studying art. Inspired by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and quickly produced an extended play.
Musical Partnership
The duo were an unusual combination: Ball was the reserved technician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all sparkle and makeup; but they achieved a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a interest with electronic instruments after viewing the band Kraftwerk perform on BBC program Tomorrow's World, 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, selling 21 million units worldwide. Together with hits by other artists, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it helped cleared the path for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The track was also included on their first album, their initial LP, which spawned two further high-charting singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at number two in the following year.
Professional Journey
Success had its upsides. "I loved being able to afford my first home, having financial security and travelling, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball not long ago told with a music magazine.
But it also caused problems. "Sudden riches allowed we could purchase substances to relieve the boredom" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball said.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it works for so many musicians."
Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also growing distant, but they succeeded to create a follow-up classic album - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more album, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to focus on other projects.
Almond went on to have a prosperous individual path, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who combined dance music with ambient pop over a enduring partnership.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, releasing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
After a further hiatus, they returned 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 September 30, 2018.
Yet, they stayed together, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.
Ball recently described the band's upcoming release as a homage to the NYC nightlife they frequented while making their first two albums.
He noted that his period in hospital had influenced the group's music.
"I experienced strange recollections when I was in and out of hospital because I was on pain medication," he told a music magazine.
"The new songs are a digital reflection of the noises in my head from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences me and Marc got up to in the 1980s."
The last versions were finished only days before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for release in the spring of 2026.
