The talented musician, one half of the innovative 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the pair scored a global success with their version of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in 1984, and their debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a classic of electronic music.
He subsequently formed the innovative electronic act The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly in his sleep at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after performing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.
Health Struggles
During that show, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, following a period of ill-health.
"I ended up injure myself quite a bit," he stated in 2023. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my back and fractured about multiple ribs and fractured my arm."
Following contracting pneumonia and developing blood poisoning, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and remained in the hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" during the warmer months, as he worked on a new album with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is set for release in the coming year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the latest project that we literally completed only a few days ago," stated the singer in a heartfelt message.
"It's truly heartbreaking as 2026 was all set to be such an positive time for him, and I find comfort from the fact that he listened to the completed album and felt that it was a great piece of work."
Tributes
Almond described his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense part of my life and for the songs you gave me. I wouldn't be where I am without you."
Richard Norris from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".
"Forming a partnership with someone is distinct from joining a group, the bond is incredibly close," he continued.
"That was the case with us. We went through so many extraordinary, extraordinary, life-affirming moments together. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Born into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in the late 50s, Ball was given up for adoption when he was a year and a half old.
He was raised in Blackpool with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his first name from Paul to his adopted name, alongside his younger sister his sister, who was also adopted.
He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both studying fine arts. Inspired by a shared love of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and quickly recorded an EP.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an unusual combination: Ball was the quiet technician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant showman, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they attained a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had developed a fascination with electronic instruments after viewing the band Kraftwerk appear on BBC science show Tomorrow's World, and started to combine dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second most popular single of the early 80s, selling 21 million units worldwide. Together with hits by Gary Numan, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it helped paved the way for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The song was also featured on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two additional top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the album up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at number two in the following year.
Professional Journey
Success had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to afford my initial property, having money and travelling, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball not long ago shared with a publication.
But it also caused problems. "Newfound wealth meant we could afford newfound drugs to alleviate the boredom" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it works for so many bands."
Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also growing distant, but they managed to produce a second memorable record - the unconventional, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to concentrate 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 combined dance music with ambient pop over a long-lasting collaboration.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, releasing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further break, they returned in recent years, issuing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was supposed to be a final performance at the large venue on 30 September, 2018.
Yet, they remained active, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball recently characterized the duo's new album as a tribute to the New York club scene they visited while making their first two albums.
He added that his time in hospital had shaped the band's sound.
"I experienced strange recollections when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a music magazine.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the sounds in my head from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences me and Marc had in the 1980s."
The last versions were finished only a short time before Ball died. It is due for release in the spring of 2026.
