The talented musician, one half of the innovative 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the team scored a global success with their version of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in 1984, and their first record their initial full-length release is regarded as a seminal work of electronic music.
He subsequently formed the pioneering techno group The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly in his sleep at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.
Recent Health Challenges
At that show, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, following a period of health issues.
"I ended up injure myself significantly," he commented in 2023. "I broke lower vertebrae in my back and fractured about multiple ribs and broke my arm."
Following catching a lung infection and developing blood poisoning, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in the hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "a great place emotionally" during the warmer months, as he worked on a new album with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for publication next year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we actually finished only a few days ago," stated the singer in a heartfelt message.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was completely planned to be such an positive year for him, and I find comfort from the knowledge that he listened to the finished record and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Tributes
Almond described his collaborator as "an exceptionally talented creative mastermind", 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 immense part of my life and for the music 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 "steadfast support".
"Being in a partnership with someone is different from joining a band, the bond is incredibly close," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many extraordinary, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Early Life
Born into a single-parent household in Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months old.
He grew up in the seaside town with his new family his caregivers, who changed his given name from Paul to his adopted name, alongside his younger sister Susan, who was also adopted.
He encountered Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both studying fine arts. Fuelled by a shared love of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and promptly recorded 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 performer, all glitter and eye-liner; but they attained a rare creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with synthesizers after watching the band Kraftwerk perform on BBC science show Tomorrow's World, and began to combine moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Their signature song became the United Kingdom's second most popular song of 1981, shifting 21 million units globally. Alongside successful tracks by other artists, Human League and Ultravox, it helped paved the path for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The track was also included on their full-length debut, their initial LP, 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.
Career Highlights
Fame had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to afford my first home, having money and travelling, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago shared with a music magazine.
But it also caused problems. "Newfound wealth meant we could purchase newfound drugs to alleviate the monotony" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I know that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a good reason, because it applies for so many bands."
Amidst the party-filled existence, the pair were also growing distant, but they managed to produce a second classic album - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to focus on other projects.
Almond proceeded to have a successful solo career, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who combined dance music with ambient pop over a long-lasting partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, releasing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
After another break, they returned in 2018, issuing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was intended to be a farewell show at the large venue on September 30, that year.
However, they stayed active, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic restrictions.
Ball recently described the band's new album as a tribute to the New York club scene they frequented while recording their first two albums.
He noted 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 publication.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the sounds in my mind from that time.
"In parallel, it's about the times me and Marc got up to in the 1980s."
The last versions were completed only days before Ball passed away. It is due for launch in the spring of 2026.
