The talented musician, one half of the innovative 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with singer Marc Almond, the duo scored a global success with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record their initial full-length release is considered a classic of electronic music.
He subsequently founded the innovative techno group The Grid, who achieved chart success with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball died calmly in his sleep 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.
Recent Health Challenges
During that performance, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, after a spate of health issues.
"I managed to damage myself quite a bit," he stated in 2023. "I fractured spinal bones in my back and cracked about multiple ribs and fractured my wrist."
After contracting a lung infection and suffering from blood poisoning, 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 summer, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is set for release in the coming year.
"He was concentrated and so happy with the latest project that we actually finished only a few days ago," stated the singer in a tribute.
"It's truly heartbreaking as 2026 was all set 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 masterpiece."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond described his collaborator as "an exceptionally talented musical genius", adding: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our legacy.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense part of my existence and for the songs you created with me. I couldn't be where I am without you."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".
"Forming a duo with someone is different from joining a group, the bond is very tight," he added.
"That was the case with us. We went through so many remarkable, incredible, memorable experiences together. Thank you, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in Chester in 1959, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half old.
He grew up in Blackpool with his new family his caregivers, who changed his given name from Paul to David, alongside his sibling Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both studying art. Inspired by a shared love of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and promptly produced an EP.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an unusual pairing: Ball was the reserved technician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all sparkle and makeup; but they achieved a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with synthesizers after watching the band Kraftwerk appear on BBC program a popular series, and began to marry dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second most popular single of 1981, shifting millions of copies worldwide. Together with successful tracks by Gary Numan, Human League and Ultravox, it contributed to paved the way for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The track was also included on their first album, their initial LP, which produced two additional top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the record up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at the second position in the following year.
Professional Journey
Fame had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my first home, having financial security and travelling, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball recently shared with a music magazine.
But it also caused problems. "Newfound wealth meant we could afford newfound drugs to alleviate the boredom" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball said.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it applies for so many bands."
Amidst the party-filled existence, the duo were also growing distant, but they succeeded to produce a follow-up classic album - the wayward, edgy and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out one more LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to concentrate on other projects.
Almond proceeded to have a prosperous individual path, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who combined dance music with melodic sounds over a long-lasting collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, releasing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another break, they returned in 2018, issuing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was supposed to be a final performance at the O2 Arena on 30 September, 2018.
Yet, they remained active, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball lately characterized the band's upcoming release as a homage to the New York club scene they visited while recording their first two albums.
He noted that his time in hospital had shaped the band's sound.
"I experienced unusual memories when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on pain medication," he told a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the sounds in my mind from those days.
"In parallel, it's about the experiences we got up to in the 1980s."
The last versions were finished only a short time before Ball passed away. It is due for launch in Spring 2026.
