The talented musician, a key member of the innovative 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the pair achieved a global success with their version of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a classic of electronic music.
He later founded the innovative electronic act The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball died calmly in his sleep at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Recent Health Challenges
At that performance, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, following a period of health issues.
"I managed to injure myself significantly," he stated in 2023. "I broke spinal bones in my back and cracked about five ribs and fractured my wrist."
Following contracting a lung infection and developing sepsis, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in hospital for seven months.
Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" over the summer, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, called 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," said the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's so sad as next year was all set to be such an positive time for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he listened to the finished record and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond referred to his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant 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 significant part of my life and for the music you created with me. I couldn'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 duo with someone is different from being in a band, the bond is very tight," he continued.
"That was the case with us. We went through so many extraordinary, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences together. Many thanks, Dave."
Formative Years
Born into a single-parent household in 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 his caregivers, who altered his given name from Paul to David, alongside his sibling his sister, who was also adopted.
He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both learning art. Fuelled by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they established Soft Cell the very year, and promptly recorded an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The duo were an unusual pairing: Ball was the quiet technician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all glitter and eye-liner; but they attained a unique creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a interest with electronic instruments after viewing the band Kraftwerk appear on BBC science show a popular series, and started to combine moody electronic sounds to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second most popular song of 1981, shifting 21 million copies globally. Alongside successful tracks by Gary Numan, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it contributed to cleared the way for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The track was also included on their full-length debut, their initial LP, which spawned two additional top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the record up with the separate release, Torch, which peaked at the second position in 1982.
Career Highlights
Success had its benefits. "I loved being able to purchase my initial property, having financial security and exploring, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago told with a music magazine.
But it also caused problems. "Newfound wealth allowed we could afford newfound drugs to relieve the monotony" of press appearances and television shows, Ball said.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it works for so many bands."
During the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also growing distant, but they managed to produce a follow-up memorable record - the unconventional, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to focus on other projects.
Almond went on to have a successful solo career, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed acid house with melodic sounds over a enduring collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, producing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another hiatus, they reappeared in recent years, releasing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was supposed 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 2020 Covid lockdown.
Ball lately described the band's new album as a homage to the NYC nightlife they visited while recording their first two albums.
He noted that his time in medical care had shaped the group's music.
"I had unusual memories when I was in and out of the hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a music magazine.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the noises in my mind from that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences me and Marc had in the 1980s."
The last versions were finished only days before Ball passed away. It is due for launch in Spring 2026.
