The talented musician, one half of the groundbreaking 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the pair achieved a global success with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a seminal work of electronic music.
He later founded the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who secured chart success with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully in his rest at his residence in London on October 22, only a short time after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.
Health Struggles
During that performance, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, after a spate of health issues.
"I ended up damage myself quite a bit," he stated in a recent interview. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my back and cracked about five ribs and broke my wrist."
After contracting 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" over the warmer months, as he was developing a fresh record with Almond, called Danceteria, which is set for release next year.
"He was concentrated and so happy with the latest project that we actually finished only a few days ago," stated the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's so sad as next year was all set to be such an uplifting year for him, and I find comfort from the fact that he listened to the completed album and felt that it was a masterpiece."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond referred to his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", adding: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our legacy.
"Many thanks Dave for being an immense aspect of my existence and for the music you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without you."
Richard Norris from The Grid, also paid tribute, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".
"Forming a partnership with someone is different from being in a group, the bond is very tight," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many extraordinary, incredible, life-affirming experiences as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half old.
He was raised in Blackpool with adoptive parents his caregivers, who changed his given name from Paul to his adopted name, together with his sibling Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He encountered Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both learning art. Inspired by a mutual passion of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and promptly recorded an extended play.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the reserved technician, hunched over his synthesizer, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they attained a unique creative synergy.
Ball had developed a interest with synthesizers after watching 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 United Kingdom's second biggest-selling single of 1981, shifting 21 million copies globally. Alongside hits by Gary Numan, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it contributed to cleared the path for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The track was also featured on their full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two further high-charting hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at number two in 1982.
Career Highlights
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 publication.
But it also presented challenges. "Newfound wealth meant we could purchase newfound drugs to alleviate the monotony" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it works for so many bands."
Amidst the party-filled existence, the pair were also drifting apart, but they managed to create 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 ending the group to focus on other projects.
Almond went on to have a successful individual path, featuring the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who combined acid house with ambient pop over a long-lasting partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell came back together in 2001, releasing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another break, they reappeared in 2018, releasing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was supposed to be a final performance at the large venue on 30 September, 2018.
However, they stayed together, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball lately described the band's upcoming release as a tribute to the New York club scene they frequented while making their initial records.
He noted that his time in hospital had shaped the band's sound.
"I had strange recollections when I was in and out of the hospital because I was on pain medication," he told a music magazine.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the sounds in my mind from those days.
"In parallel, it's about the times me and Marc had in the 80s."
The last versions were finished only a short time before Ball died. It is due for launch in Spring 2026.
