The talented musician, a key member of the groundbreaking 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the pair scored a worldwide hit 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 techno group The Grid, who achieved chart success with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball died peacefully in his rest at his residence in London on October 22, only a short time after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in Henley-on-Thames.
Recent Health Challenges
During that performance, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a spate of ill-health.
"I ended up injure myself significantly," he commented in a recent interview. "I broke spinal bones in my spine and fractured about five ribs and broke my arm."
Following catching a lung infection and suffering from blood poisoning, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in the hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" during the warmer months, as he was developing a fresh record with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for publication next year.
"He was concentrated and very pleased with the latest project that we literally finished only a short time ago," stated the singer in a heartfelt message.
"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 fact that he heard the completed album and believed that it was a masterpiece."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond referred to his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", adding: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our legacy.
"Thank you Dave for being an significant aspect of my existence and for the songs you gave me. I wouldn't be where I am without your influence."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".
"Being in a duo with someone is different from joining a group, the bond is very tight," he continued.
"That was the case with us. We experienced so many extraordinary, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in Chester in 1959, 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 changed his first name from his birth name to his adopted name, alongside his sibling Susan, who was also adopted.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both learning fine arts. Inspired by a mutual passion of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the same year, and promptly produced an extended play.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an unusual combination: Ball was the quiet technician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they achieved a unique creative synergy.
Ball had developed a fascination with electronic instruments after watching the band Kraftwerk perform on a television program Tomorrow's World, and started to marry dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Their signature song became the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling song of the early 80s, shifting 21 million units worldwide. Alongside hits by other artists, Human League and electronic acts, it contributed to paved the way for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The song was also featured on their full-length debut, 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 reached at number two in the following year.
Career Highlights
Fame had its benefits. "I loved being able to purchase my first home, having financial security and travelling, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball not long ago shared with a music magazine.
But it also caused challenges. "Newfound wealth meant we could afford newfound drugs to alleviate the monotony" of media interviews and television shows, Ball explained.
"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it applies for so many bands."
Amidst the party-filled existence, the pair were also growing distant, but they managed to create a second classic album - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released another album, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to focus on other projects.
Almond proceeded to have a prosperous individual path, featuring the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who combined dance music with ambient pop over a enduring partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, producing the Top 40 record Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another hiatus, 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 O2 Arena on September 30, 2018.
However, they stayed active, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball lately characterized the duo's new album as a homage to the NYC nightlife they frequented while recording their initial records.
He noted that his time in hospital had shaped the group's music.
"I had strange recollections when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on pain medication," he explained to a publication.
"The new songs are a electronic representation of the sounds in my mind from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times me and Marc got up to in the 80s."
The final mixes were completed only days before Ball passed away. It is due for launch in the spring of 2026.
