The talented musician, a key member of the innovative 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Alongside singer Marc Almond, the team scored a worldwide hit 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 electronic music.
He later founded the innovative electronic act The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball died calmly in his sleep at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after performing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Recent Health Challenges
At that show, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the previous couple of years, following a period of health issues.
"I ended up injure myself significantly," he commented in a recent interview. "I broke spinal bones in my back and fractured about five ribs and fractured my wrist."
Following contracting pneumonia and developing blood poisoning, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in the hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "a great place emotionally" over the summer, as he worked on a new album with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for publication in the coming year.
"He was concentrated and very pleased with the new album that we actually completed only a few days 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 fact that he listened to the completed album and felt that it was a masterpiece."
Tributes
Almond referred to his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", adding: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our legacy.
"Many thanks Dave for being an immense aspect of my life and for the music you gave me. I wouldn't be where I am without you."
Richard Norris from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".
"Being in a partnership with someone is distinct from being in a band, the bond is incredibly close," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many remarkable, incredible, memorable experiences together. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half old.
He grew up in the seaside town with adoptive parents his caregivers, who altered his given name from his birth name to his adopted name, alongside his sibling Susan, who was also adopted.
He encountered Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both learning fine arts. Fuelled by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and promptly recorded an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The duo were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the quiet technician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all glitter and eye-liner; but they achieved a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had developed a fascination with synthesizers after viewing the band Kraftwerk perform on a television science show a popular series, and began to marry dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second biggest-selling single of the early 80s, selling millions of copies globally. Together with successful tracks by Gary Numan, Human League and electronic acts, it helped paved the path for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The song was also featured on their first album, their initial LP, which produced two further high-charting singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at the second position in the following year.
Career Highlights
Fame had its upsides. "I loved being able to afford my initial property, having financial security and exploring, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball recently shared with a music magazine.
But it also presented problems. "Sudden riches allowed we could purchase newfound drugs to relieve the monotony" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it applies for so many bands."
Amidst the party-filled existence, the pair were also growing distant, but they succeeded to produce a follow-up memorable record - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out another LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the group to focus on individual endeavors.
Almond proceeded to have a successful individual path, including the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed acid house with ambient pop over a long-lasting collaboration.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, producing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further break, they reappeared in 2018, issuing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was supposed to be a farewell show at the large venue on 30 September, that year.
However, they stayed together, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball recently characterized the duo's upcoming release as a homage to the New York club scene they frequented while recording their initial records.
He added that his time in medical care had shaped the group's music.
"I experienced unusual memories when I was in and out of hospital because I was on morphine," he told a music magazine.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the sounds in my mind from that time.
"In parallel, it's about the times me and Marc had in the 80s."
The final mixes were finished only days before Ball passed away. It is due for release in the spring of 2026.
