The talented musician, a key member of the groundbreaking 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Alongside singer Marc Almond, the team achieved a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in 1984, and their debut album their initial full-length release is considered a seminal work of electronic music.
He subsequently formed the innovative electronic act The Grid, who achieved chart success with their 1994 single the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully 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 Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
During that performance, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, following a spate of health issues.
"I ended up damage myself significantly," he stated in 2023. "I fractured spinal bones in my spine and fractured about multiple ribs and broke my wrist."
After catching a lung infection and suffering from blood poisoning, he was placed in an induced coma and stayed in the hospital for seven months.
Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" during the summer, as he was developing a fresh record with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is scheduled for release next year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the latest project that we actually finished only a few days ago," stated the vocalist in a heartfelt message.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was completely planned to be such an positive time for him, and I find comfort from the knowledge that he listened to the completed album and felt that it was a masterpiece."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond referred to his bandmate as "an exceptionally talented musical genius", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our body of work.
"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 "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".
"Being in a partnership with someone is distinct from being in a group, the connection is incredibly close," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences together. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Born into a one-parent family in Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was a year and a half old.
He was raised in the seaside town with adoptive parents his caregivers, who changed his first name from Paul to his adopted name, together with his sibling his sister, who was also adopted.
He encountered Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both studying art. Fuelled by a shared love of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the same year, and quickly produced an EP.
Musical Partnership
The duo were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the quiet musician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant showman, all glitter and makeup; but they achieved a rare creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with synthesizers after viewing Kraftwerk appear on a television science show Tomorrow's World, and started to marry dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling single of 1981, shifting 21 million units globally. Together with hits by Gary Numan, Human League and Ultravox, it helped cleared the path for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The song was also included on their full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two additional top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at number two in 1982.
Career Highlights
Fame had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my initial property, having financial security and travelling, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball not long ago told with a music magazine.
But it also presented challenges. "Sudden riches meant we could afford substances to alleviate the monotony" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball said.
"I realize 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 duo were also growing distant, but they succeeded to produce a second memorable record - the unconventional, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more album, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to focus on individual endeavors.
Almond proceeded to have a prosperous individual path, including the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who mixed dance music with melodic sounds over a long-lasting partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell came back together in 2001, releasing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
After another hiatus, they returned in 2018, issuing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was intended to be a farewell show at the large venue on September 30, that year.
However, they remained active, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball recently described the duo's upcoming release as a homage to the New York club scene they visited while making their first two albums.
He added that his period in hospital had shaped the band's sound.
"I had strange recollections when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on pain medication," he told a publication.
"The new songs are a electronic representation of the noises in my mind from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times we had in the 1980s."
The last versions were finished only a short time before Ball died. It is scheduled for release in the spring of 2026.
