The talented musician, one half of the pioneering 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the pair scored a worldwide hit with their version of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in 1984, and their debut album their initial full-length release is considered a classic of synth-pop.
He later formed the innovative electronic act The Grid, who achieved chart success with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly in his sleep at his home in London on October 22, just weeks after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.
Health Struggles
At that performance, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, after a period of ill-health.
"I ended up damage myself quite a bit," he commented in 2023. "I fractured spinal bones in my back and cracked about multiple ribs and broke my wrist."
After catching a lung infection and developing sepsis, he was placed in an induced coma and remained in hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "high spirits mentally" over the warmer months, as he was developing a fresh record with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for release in the coming year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we literally finished only a few days ago," stated the vocalist in a heartfelt message.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was all set to be such an uplifting time for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he heard the completed album and felt that it was a masterpiece."
Tributes
Almond described his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", adding: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our legacy.
"Thank you Dave for being an significant aspect of my existence and for the songs you created with 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".
"Being in a duo with someone is different from being in a group, the bond is very tight," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many extraordinary, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences together. Many thanks, Dave."
Formative Years
Born into a single-parent household in the city of Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months old.
He was raised in the seaside town with adoptive parents Donald and Brenda Ball, who altered his first name from his birth name to his adopted name, together with his younger sister Susan, who was also adopted.
He encountered Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both studying art. Fuelled by a shared love of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and promptly recorded an EP.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an distinctive combination: Ball was the quiet technician, hunched over his synthesizer, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they achieved a unique creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with electronic instruments after watching the band Kraftwerk appear on a television program Tomorrow's World, and began to combine moody electronic sounds to the catchy tunes Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second biggest-selling single of 1981, shifting millions of copies worldwide. Alongside hits by Gary Numan, Human League and electronic acts, it contributed to cleared the path for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The track was also included on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two further top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the album up with the separate release, Torch, which peaked at the second position in the following year.
Professional Journey
Success had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my first home, having money and exploring, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago told with a music magazine.
But it also presented challenges. "Newfound wealth meant we could afford substances to relieve the monotony" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it applies for so many bands."
Amidst the party-filled existence, the pair were also drifting apart, but they succeeded to produce a follow-up classic album - the wayward, edgy and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out another LP, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to focus on other projects.
Almond went on to have a prosperous solo career, featuring the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who mixed acid house with melodic sounds over a long-lasting collaboration.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell came back together in 2001, producing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
After another break, they returned in 2018, releasing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was supposed to be a final performance at the large venue on 30 September, 2018.
However, they stayed together, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball lately characterized the band's upcoming release as a homage to the New York club scene they visited while making their first two albums.
He noted that his time in hospital had influenced the group's music.
"I experienced unusual memories when I was in and out of hospital because I was on morphine," he told a publication.
"The new songs are a electronic representation of the sounds in my head from those days.
"In parallel, it's about the experiences we got up to in the 80s."
The last versions were completed only a short time before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for launch in the spring of 2026.
