The talented musician, a key member of the innovative 1980s synth-pop duo Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Alongside singer Marc Almond, the duo scored a global success with their version of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in 1984, and their first record their initial full-length release is considered a seminal work of electronic music.
He subsequently founded the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly in his rest at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
At that performance, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, after a spate of health issues.
"I managed to damage myself significantly," he stated in a recent interview. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my back and cracked about five ribs and broke my arm."
After contracting a lung infection and developing blood poisoning, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and remained in the hospital for seven months.
Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" over the warmer months, as he worked on a new album with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication in the coming year.
"He was concentrated and so happy with the new album that we actually finished only a short time ago," stated the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's so sad as next year was all set to be such an positive time for him, and I find comfort from the knowledge that he heard the completed album and believed that it was a masterpiece."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond referred to his collaborator as "an exceptionally talented creative mastermind", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our body of work.
"Many thanks Dave for being an significant part of my existence and for the music you gave me. I couldn't be where I am without you."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".
"Forming a partnership with someone is distinct from joining a band, the bond is incredibly close," he added.
"That was the case with us. We went through so many extraordinary, extraordinary, memorable experiences as a team. Many thanks, Dave."
Early Life
Born into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months of age.
He grew up in the seaside town with adoptive parents his caregivers, who changed his given name from his birth name to David, alongside his younger sister his sister, who was also adopted.
He encountered Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both studying art. Inspired by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they established Soft Cell the same year, and promptly recorded an EP.
Musical Partnership
The duo were an unusual combination: Ball was the reserved technician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all sparkle and makeup; but they achieved a rare creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with synthesizers after watching 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 most popular song of the early 80s, shifting 21 million copies worldwide. Together with successful tracks by Gary Numan, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it helped cleared the path for the synth-pop sound of the 80s.
The song was also featured on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which spawned two additional high-charting hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at number two in the following year.
Career Highlights
Fame had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to afford my initial property, having money and exploring, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball not long ago told with a publication.
But it also caused problems. "Sudden riches meant we could purchase substances to alleviate the boredom" of media interviews and television shows, Ball explained.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it works for so many bands."
Amidst the party-filled existence, the duo were also growing distant, but they succeeded to create a follow-up memorable record - 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 ending the group to concentrate on individual endeavors.
Almond went on to have a successful individual path, including the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who mixed dance music with ambient pop over a long-lasting collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, releasing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
After another break, they reappeared in recent years, releasing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was supposed to be a final performance at the O2 Arena on September 30, that year.
However, they remained active, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 Covid lockdown.
Ball lately described the duo's new album as a tribute to the NYC nightlife they visited while making their initial records.
He noted that his period in medical care had influenced the band's sound.
"I had strange recollections when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on pain medication," he told a music magazine.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the sounds in my mind from those days.
"In parallel, it's about the times we had in the 1980s."
The last versions were completed only a short time before Ball died. It is scheduled for release in the spring of 2026.
