The talented musician, one half of the groundbreaking 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the pair achieved a global success with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record their initial full-length release is regarded as a seminal work of synth-pop.
He later founded the innovative electronic act The Grid, who secured chart success with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball died calmly 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 Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
At that show, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a spate of health issues.
"I ended up damage myself quite a bit," he commented in 2023. "I broke lower vertebrae in my spine and fractured about multiple ribs and broke my wrist."
Following contracting pneumonia and suffering from sepsis, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and remained in the hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "a great place mentally" during the summer, as he worked on a new album with Almond, called Danceteria, which is scheduled for release in the coming year.
"He was concentrated and very pleased with the latest project that we literally finished only a few days ago," stated the singer in a heartfelt message.
"It's so sad as next year was all set to be such an positive time for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he heard the finished record and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond referred to his bandmate as "an exceptionally talented creative mastermind", adding: "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 existence and for the music you gave me. I wouldn't be where I am without your influence."
Richard Norris from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a duo with someone is distinct from joining a group, the connection is incredibly close," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, life-affirming moments together. Many thanks, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in the city of Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half of age.
He was raised in Blackpool with adoptive parents Donald and Brenda Ball, who altered his first name from his birth name to David, together with his sibling Susan, who was also adopted.
He met Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both studying fine arts. Inspired by a mutual passion of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the same year, and promptly produced an EP.
Musical Partnership
The duo were an distinctive combination: Ball was the quiet musician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they achieved a rare creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a interest with electronic instruments after watching Kraftwerk perform on BBC program Tomorrow's World, and started to marry moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second biggest-selling song of the early 80s, selling 21 million copies globally. Together with hits by other artists, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it contributed to paved the path for the electronic music style 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 separate release, Torch, which peaked at number two in 1982.
Professional Journey
Success had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my initial property, having financial security and travelling, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball recently shared with a publication.
But it also caused challenges. "Newfound wealth allowed we could purchase newfound drugs to relieve the boredom" of media interviews and television shows, Ball explained.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it works for so many musicians."
Amidst the party-filled existence, the pair were also growing distant, but they succeeded to produce a follow-up classic album - the wayward, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to focus on individual endeavors.
Almond proceeded to have a prosperous individual path, including the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed acid house with ambient pop over a long-lasting partnership.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, releasing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
After a further break, they returned in recent years, releasing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was intended to be a final performance at the O2 Arena on 30 September, 2018.
Yet, they remained together, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball recently described the band's upcoming release as a tribute to the NYC nightlife they visited while recording their initial records.
He added that his time in hospital had shaped the group's music.
"I experienced strange recollections when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on pain medication," he explained to a music magazine.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the sounds in my mind from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences me and Marc got up to in the 80s."
The final mixes were finished only days before Ball passed away. It is due for release in Spring 2026.
