The talented musician, one half of the innovative 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the team scored a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in 1984, and their first record their initial full-length release is considered a seminal work of synth-pop.
He subsequently formed the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who secured chart success with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball died calmly in his rest at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after performing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.
Health Struggles
During that show, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, after a spate of health issues.
"I managed to damage 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 suffering from sepsis, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in hospital for seven months.
Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place mentally" over the summer, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication next year.
"He was concentrated and so happy with the new album that we actually completed only a short time ago," said the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's truly heartbreaking as 2026 was completely planned to be such an uplifting year for him, and I find comfort from the knowledge that he heard the completed album and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Tributes
Almond referred to his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", stating: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our body of work.
"Many thanks Dave for being an immense aspect of my life and for the music you created with me. I couldn't be where I am without your influence."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Being in a partnership with someone is different from being in a band, the bond is very tight," he added.
"That was the case with us. We experienced so many extraordinary, extraordinary, life-affirming moments together. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half of age.
He grew up in Blackpool with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his given name from Paul to his adopted name, together with his sibling his sister, who was also adopted.
He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both learning art. Fuelled by a mutual passion of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the very year, and quickly produced an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The duo were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the reserved technician, hunched over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all glitter and eye-liner; but they attained a unique creative synergy.
Ball had developed a interest with synthesizers after watching the band Kraftwerk appear on BBC program Tomorrow's World, and began to combine dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second most popular song of the early 80s, selling millions of copies globally. Together with hits by other artists, Human League and Ultravox, it contributed to paved the path for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The track 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 continued the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at number two in the following year.
Professional Journey
Success had its benefits. "I loved being able to afford my initial property, having money and exploring, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago told with a publication.
But it also caused problems. "Sudden riches allowed we could purchase substances to relieve the monotony" of media interviews and television shows, Ball explained.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it applies for so many bands."
Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also drifting apart, but they managed to produce a second classic album - the wayward, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released 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, including the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed acid house with ambient pop over a enduring partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, producing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further break, they returned in recent years, 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, that year.
Yet, they remained active, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball recently characterized the band's new album as a tribute to the New York club scene they frequented while making their first two albums.
He noted that his period in medical care had influenced the group's music.
"I experienced unusual memories when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on pain medication," he explained to a publication.
"The new songs are a digital reflection of the sounds in my head from that time.
"In parallel, it's about the experiences we got up to in the 80s."
The last versions were finished only a short time before Ball died. It is due for launch in the spring of 2026.
