The talented musician, a key member of the innovative 1980s synth-pop band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with singer Marc Almond, the pair scored a global success with their version of Gloria Jones' 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 techno group The Grid, who achieved chart success with their 1994 single the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully in his rest at his residence in London on October 22, just weeks after performing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in Henley-on-Thames.
Recent Health Challenges
During that show, 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 commented in a recent interview. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my spine and cracked about multiple ribs and broke my arm."
After contracting a lung infection and developing blood poisoning, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and remained in hospital for seven months.
Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" during the summer, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for release next year.
"He was focused and so happy with the new album that we actually finished only a short time ago," said the singer in a heartfelt message.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was completely planned to be such an positive year for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he listened to the completed album and felt that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond referred to his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our legacy.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense part of my existence and for the songs you created with me. I couldn't be where I am without your influence."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".
"Being in a duo with someone is distinct from joining a band, the connection is very tight," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, memorable moments together. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months old.
He grew up in Blackpool with adoptive parents Donald and Brenda Ball, who altered his given name from his birth name to David, alongside his sibling Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both learning fine arts. Inspired by a shared love of Northern Soul, they established Soft Cell the very year, and quickly produced an extended play.
Creative Collaboration
The pair were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the quiet technician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all glitter and makeup; but they attained a unique creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with synthesizers after watching the band Kraftwerk appear on a television science show a popular series, and started to marry dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.
Their signature song became the UK's second most popular single of 1981, shifting millions of copies worldwide. Together with successful tracks by Gary Numan, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it helped paved the way for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The track was also featured on their full-length debut, their initial LP, which produced two further top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the album up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at the second position in 1982.
Career Highlights
Fame had its benefits. "I loved being able to purchase my first home, having financial security and exploring, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago told with a music magazine.
But it also caused problems. "Sudden riches meant we could afford substances to alleviate the boredom" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball said.
"I know that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it applies for so many musicians."
Amidst the party-filled existence, the pair were also growing distant, but they managed to produce a second memorable record - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released another album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to concentrate on other projects.
Almond went on to have a successful solo career, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed dance music with ambient pop over a long-lasting collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, producing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
After a further hiatus, they returned 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, 2018.
Yet, they stayed together, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball lately described the duo's upcoming release as a tribute to the NYC nightlife they frequented while making their initial records.
He added that his period in hospital had influenced the group's music.
"I had strange recollections when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the noises in my mind from those days.
"In parallel, it's about the experiences we had in the 80s."
The last versions were completed only days before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for launch in Spring 2026.
