The talented musician, a key member of the innovative 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with singer Marc Almond, the pair achieved a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album their initial full-length release is considered a seminal work of synth-pop.
He subsequently formed the innovative electronic act The Grid, who secured chart success with their 1994 single the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully in his sleep at his home in London on October 22, just weeks after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in the Thames-side town.
Recent Health Challenges
During that performance, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, following a spate of ill-health.
"I ended up damage myself quite a bit," he commented in 2023. "I fractured spinal bones in my spine and fractured about multiple ribs and broke my arm."
After contracting a lung infection and developing sepsis, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in hospital for half a year.
Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place emotionally" during the summer, as he worked on a new album with Almond, called Danceteria, which is set for publication in the coming year.
"He was concentrated and very pleased 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 fact that he heard the completed album and felt that it was a masterpiece."
Tributes
Almond referred to his collaborator as "an exceptionally talented creative mastermind", 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 significant aspect 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, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".
"Being in a partnership with someone is different from joining a group, the bond is incredibly close," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many extraordinary, incredible, memorable moments as a team. Many thanks, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in the late 50s, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months old.
He grew up in the seaside town with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his first name from his birth name to his adopted name, alongside his sibling Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both learning fine arts. Fuelled by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they established Soft Cell the same year, and quickly recorded an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The duo were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the reserved technician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant showman, all sparkle and makeup; but they attained a rare musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a interest with synthesizers after viewing Kraftwerk perform on BBC science show Tomorrow's World, and began to combine dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.
Their signature song became the UK's second biggest-selling single of the early 80s, selling 21 million units worldwide. Alongside successful tracks by other artists, Human League and Ultravox, it helped paved the path for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The track was also included on their full-length debut, their initial LP, which spawned two further high-charting hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at the second position in 1982.
Career Highlights
Success had its upsides. "I loved being able to afford my initial property, having financial security and travelling, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball not long ago shared with a music magazine.
But it also caused challenges. "Sudden riches allowed we could afford newfound drugs to alleviate the monotony" of media interviews and television shows, Ball explained.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it applies for so many bands."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also drifting apart, but they succeeded to create 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 band to focus on other projects.
Almond went on 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 enduring collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, releasing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
After a further break, they reappeared 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.
However, they stayed together, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball recently described the band's new album as a tribute to the New York club scene they frequented while recording their initial records.
He noted that his period in medical care had influenced the band's sound.
"I experienced strange recollections when I was in and out of hospital because I was on morphine," he told a publication.
"The new songs are a electronic representation of the noises in my head from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times me and Marc got up to in the 1980s."
The last versions were finished only a short time before Ball died. It is due for launch in the spring of 2026.
