The talented musician, a key member of the groundbreaking 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with singer Marc Almond, the duo achieved 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 innovative electronic act The Grid, who secured chart success with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly in his rest at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
During that performance, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, following a spate of ill-health.
"I managed to injure myself significantly," he commented in 2023. "I fractured spinal bones in my back and cracked about multiple ribs and fractured my arm."
Following catching a lung infection and suffering from blood poisoning, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "a great place mentally" over the warmer months, as he was developing a fresh record with Almond, called Danceteria, which is scheduled for release next year.
"He was focused and so happy with the new album that we actually completed only a short time ago," said the singer in a tribute.
"It's so sad as 2026 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."
Tributes
Almond described his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", adding: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our body of work.
"Many thanks Dave for being an immense part of my life and for the music you created with me. I couldn't be where I am without your influence."
Richard Norris from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".
"Being in a partnership with someone is distinct from joining a group, the connection is incredibly close," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many remarkable, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences together. Thank you, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in the city of Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months of age.
He was raised in Blackpool with adoptive parents his caregivers, who altered his given name from his birth name to his adopted name, together with his sibling his sister, who was similarly welcomed.
He encountered Almond at an art college in the late 70s, where they were both studying fine arts. Fuelled by a mutual passion of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the very year, and quickly produced an EP.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an distinctive combination: Ball was the reserved technician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all glitter and makeup; but they achieved a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a interest with synthesizers after watching the band Kraftwerk appear on BBC science show a popular series, and started to marry dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second most popular single of the early 80s, shifting millions of units globally. Alongside successful tracks by Gary Numan, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it contributed to cleared the path for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The song was also included on their full-length debut, their initial LP, which spawned two additional top five 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.
Professional Journey
Success had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my first home, having financial security and travelling, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball recently told with a music magazine.
But it also caused challenges. "Sudden riches allowed we could purchase newfound drugs to alleviate the boredom" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball said.
"I know that's a common saying, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it applies for so many musicians."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also growing distant, but they managed to create a follow-up memorable record - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released another LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the group to concentrate on other projects.
Almond proceeded to have a prosperous individual path, featuring the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who mixed acid house with ambient pop over a long-lasting partnership.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, producing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further break, they reappeared in recent years, issuing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was intended to be a farewell show at the large venue on 30 September, that year.
However, they remained active, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball recently characterized the duo's upcoming release as a homage to the NYC nightlife they frequented while recording their initial records.
He added that his period in hospital had shaped the band's sound.
"I had unusual memories when I was in and out of the hospital because I was on morphine," 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 experiences me and Marc had in the 80s."
The final mixes were finished only a short time before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for launch in the spring of 2026.
