The talented musician, one half of the groundbreaking 1980s synth-pop band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the pair scored a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in 1984, and their debut album their initial full-length release is regarded as a classic of synth-pop.
He later formed the innovative techno group The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball died peacefully in his rest at his residence in London on October 22, just weeks after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
During that show, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, following a spate of ill-health.
"I managed to damage myself quite a bit," he stated in a recent interview. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my spine and fractured about five ribs and fractured my wrist."
Following contracting a lung infection and developing blood poisoning, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and remained 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, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is scheduled for release next year.
"He was focused and so happy with the latest project that we actually completed only a short time ago," said the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was completely planned to be such an positive time for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he listened to the finished record and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond described his bandmate as "an exceptionally talented creative mastermind", adding: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our legacy.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense aspect of my life and for the songs you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without you."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a duo with someone is distinct from joining a group, the bond is incredibly close," he added.
"That was the case with us. We experienced so many remarkable, incredible, life-affirming experiences as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was a year and a half of age.
He grew up in the seaside town with adoptive parents his caregivers, who altered his first name from Paul to David, alongside his sibling his sister, who was also adopted.
He encountered Almond at an art college in the late 70s, where they were both learning fine arts. Inspired by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they established Soft Cell the same year, and promptly produced an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The pair were an unusual combination: Ball was the reserved musician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant showman, all glitter and eye-liner; but they attained a unique creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with electronic instruments after watching the band Kraftwerk perform on BBC science show Tomorrow's World, and started to combine dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second most popular single of 1981, selling 21 million units worldwide. Alongside successful tracks by Gary Numan, Human League and Ultravox, it contributed to paved the way for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The track was also included on their first album, their initial LP, which produced two additional top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued 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 purchase my initial property, having financial security and travelling, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball not long ago told with a music magazine.
But it also presented challenges. "Newfound wealth meant we could purchase substances to relieve the monotony" of media interviews and television shows, Ball said.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it works for so many musicians."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also growing distant, but they succeeded to create a second classic album - the unconventional, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the group to focus on other projects.
Almond went on to have a successful solo career, featuring the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed acid house with melodic sounds over a enduring collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, releasing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another break, they reappeared in 2018, releasing 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.
Yet, they stayed active, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball recently described the duo's new album as a homage to the New York club scene they frequented while recording their initial records.
He added that his time in medical care had shaped the band's sound.
"I experienced strange recollections when I was in and out of hospital because I was on morphine," he told a music magazine.
"The new songs are a electronic representation of the sounds in my head from those days.
"In parallel, it's about the times me and Marc had in the 1980s."
The last versions were finished only a short time before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for release in Spring 2026.
