The talented musician, one half of the pioneering 1980s synth-pop duo Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with singer Marc Almond, the duo scored a global success with their version of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a classic of electronic music.
He later formed the innovative electronic act The Grid, who secured chart success with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully in his sleep 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
At that show, 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 2023. "I broke spinal bones in my back and fractured about five ribs and fractured my wrist."
Following contracting pneumonia and developing sepsis, he was placed in an induced coma and remained in the hospital for seven months.
Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place emotionally" during the warmer months, as he was developing a new album with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is set for release next year.
"He was focused and so happy with the latest project that we literally completed only a short time ago," stated the singer in a heartfelt message.
"It's so sad as next year was completely planned 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 "an exceptionally talented musical genius", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our legacy.
"Thank you Dave for being an significant part of my life and for the songs you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without you."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a duo with someone is distinct from joining a group, the connection is very tight," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many extraordinary, extraordinary, memorable experiences together. Thank you, Dave."
Early Life
Born into a single-parent household in the city of Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months old.
He was raised in the seaside town with his new family 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 Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both learning fine arts. Fuelled by a mutual passion of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the same year, and promptly recorded an extended play.
Creative Collaboration
The pair were an unusual combination: Ball was the reserved technician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant showman, all glitter and eye-liner; but they attained a unique creative synergy.
Ball had developed a fascination with synthesizers after watching Kraftwerk appear on BBC science show 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 single of the early 80s, shifting 21 million copies globally. Together with hits by other artists, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it contributed to paved the way for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The track was also featured on their first album, their initial LP, which spawned two additional top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at number two in 1982.
Career Highlights
Success had its upsides. "I loved being able to afford my initial property, having money and exploring, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball recently shared with a publication.
But it also caused challenges. "Sudden riches meant we could purchase newfound drugs to alleviate 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 party-filled existence, the duo were also growing distant, but they managed to create a second classic album - the unconventional, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out one more album, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to focus on other projects.
Almond went on to have a prosperous solo career, including 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 long-lasting collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell came back together in 2001, releasing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another hiatus, they reappeared in 2018, issuing 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 stayed active, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball lately described the band's new album as a tribute to the New York club scene they visited while recording their initial records.
He noted that his period in medical care had shaped the band's sound.
"I experienced strange recollections when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a music magazine.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the noises in my mind from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times me and Marc had in the 80s."
The last versions were finished only a short time before Ball passed away. It is due for release in the spring of 2026.
