The talented musician, one half of the pioneering 1980s synth-pop band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with singer Marc Almond, the team achieved a global success with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record their initial full-length release is considered a classic of electronic music.
He later founded the innovative techno group The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with their 1994 single the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball died peacefully in his rest at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.
Health Struggles
At that show, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, following a spate of health issues.
"I managed to injure myself significantly," he stated in a recent interview. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my spine and fractured about five ribs and fractured my arm."
Following contracting pneumonia and suffering from sepsis, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "high spirits mentally" during the warmer months, as he was developing a fresh record with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication in the coming year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the latest project that we actually finished only a few days ago," stated the singer in a tribute.
"It's truly heartbreaking as 2026 was completely planned to be such an uplifting year for him, and I find comfort from the fact that he heard the finished record and felt that it was a great piece of work."
Tributes
Almond described his bandmate as "an exceptionally talented creative mastermind", stating: "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 couldn't be where I am without your influence."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, shared his condolences, recalling Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".
"Being in a duo with someone is different from being in a group, the connection is very tight," he added.
"That was the case with us. We experienced so many remarkable, incredible, life-affirming experiences together. Many thanks, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in Chester in 1959, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months old.
He grew up in the seaside town with his new family his caregivers, who changed his first name from his birth name to his adopted name, alongside his younger sister his sister, who was also adopted.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both learning art. Inspired by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they established Soft Cell the same year, and quickly produced an extended play.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the reserved musician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they achieved a rare creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a interest with synthesizers after viewing the band Kraftwerk perform on a television program Tomorrow's World, and began to combine dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second most popular single of the early 80s, selling millions of copies globally. Together with hits by other artists, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it helped paved the way for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The song was also featured on their first album, their initial LP, which spawned two additional high-charting hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at the second position in 1982.
Career Highlights
Fame had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my first home, having financial security and travelling, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball recently told with a music magazine.
But it also caused problems. "Sudden riches allowed we could purchase substances to relieve the boredom" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it works for so many musicians."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also growing distant, but they succeeded to create a second memorable record - the unconventional, edgy and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released another album, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the group to focus on other projects.
Almond went on to have a prosperous solo career, featuring the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who mixed acid house with melodic sounds over a enduring collaboration.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, producing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another hiatus, they reappeared in 2018, issuing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was supposed to be a farewell show at the O2 Arena on September 30, that year.
However, they remained together, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball recently characterized the duo's new album as a tribute to the NYC nightlife they frequented while making their first two albums.
He noted that his time in hospital had influenced the band's sound.
"I had strange recollections when I was in and out of hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the sounds in my head from those days.
"In parallel, it's about the times me and Marc got up to in the 1980s."
The final mixes were completed only a short time before Ball died. It is scheduled for launch in the spring of 2026.
