The talented musician, one half of the pioneering 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the team achieved a worldwide hit with their version of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album their initial full-length release is regarded as a classic of synth-pop.
He later founded the innovative electronic act The Grid, who secured chart success with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly in his sleep at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in the Thames-side town.
Health Struggles
During that performance, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, after a spate of ill-health.
"I managed to damage myself significantly," he commented in a recent interview. "I broke lower vertebrae in my back and fractured about five ribs and fractured my arm."
Following catching pneumonia and developing sepsis, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in the hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "high spirits mentally" over the summer, as he worked on a new album with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication next year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we literally finished only a few days ago," stated the singer in a tribute.
"It's truly heartbreaking as 2026 was completely planned to be such an positive year for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he heard the completed album and felt that it was a great piece of work."
Tributes
Almond described his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our body of work.
"Thank you Dave for being an significant part of my existence and for the songs you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without your influence."
Richard Norris from The Grid, shared his condolences, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Being in a duo with someone is different from joining a group, the bond is incredibly close," he added.
"That was the case with us. We went through so many remarkable, incredible, life-affirming moments together. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was a year and a half old.
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 learning art. Fuelled by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they established Soft Cell the same year, and quickly produced an extended play.
Creative Collaboration
The duo were an unusual pairing: Ball was the quiet technician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all glitter and makeup; but they achieved a rare creative synergy.
Ball had developed a interest with synthesizers after viewing the band Kraftwerk appear on a television science show Tomorrow's World, and started to marry dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second most popular single of the early 80s, selling 21 million copies globally. Together with successful tracks by other artists, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it contributed to paved the path for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The track was also featured on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two additional high-charting hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at the second position in the following year.
Professional Journey
Success had its benefits. "I loved being able to purchase my first home, having money and travelling, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball recently told with a music magazine.
But it also caused problems. "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 common saying, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it works for so many musicians."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also drifting apart, but they managed to produce a follow-up classic album - the unconventional, edgy and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the group to concentrate on other projects.
Almond went on to have a prosperous individual path, including the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who combined acid house with ambient pop over a enduring partnership.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, releasing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another break, they reappeared in 2018, releasing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was intended to be a final performance at the O2 Arena on September 30, that year.
Yet, they stayed active, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball lately described the band's new album as a homage to the NYC nightlife they frequented while making their initial records.
He added that his period in hospital had shaped the group's music.
"I had strange recollections when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a publication.
"The new songs are a electronic representation of the sounds in my head from that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences we got up to in the 1980s."
The last versions were finished only days before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for release in Spring 2026.
