The talented musician, one half of the innovative 1980s synth-pop band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the pair achieved a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in 1984, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a classic of synth-pop.
He subsequently formed the innovative techno group The Grid, who achieved chart success with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly in his sleep at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in the Thames-side town.
Health Struggles
During that performance, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, following a period of ill-health.
"I managed to injure myself significantly," he stated in 2023. "I broke spinal bones in my spine and cracked about multiple ribs and broke my arm."
After catching pneumonia and developing sepsis, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and remained in hospital for half a year.
Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" during the warmer months, as he worked on a new album with Almond, called Danceteria, which is set for publication next year.
"He was focused and so happy with the new album that we actually completed only a few days ago," said the vocalist in a heartfelt message.
"It's truly heartbreaking as 2026 was completely planned to be such an positive year for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he heard the finished record and believed that it was a masterpiece."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond referred to his collaborator as "an exceptionally talented musical genius", adding: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our body of work.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense part of my life and for the music you gave me. I couldn't be where I am without your influence."
Richard Norris from The Grid, shared his condolences, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a partnership with someone is different from being in a band, the bond is very tight," he continued.
"That was the case with us. We experienced so many remarkable, incredible, memorable experiences as a team. Many thanks, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in the city of 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 his new family his caregivers, who changed his first name from his birth name to David, together with his sibling Susan, who was also adopted.
He encountered Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both learning fine arts. Fuelled by a mutual passion of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and quickly produced an extended play.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the quiet musician, hunched over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all sparkle and makeup; but they achieved a rare musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with synthesizers after watching Kraftwerk perform on BBC science show a popular series, and started to combine dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second biggest-selling song of the early 80s, selling 21 million units globally. Together with successful tracks by Gary Numan, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it contributed to paved the path for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The song was also featured on their full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which spawned two additional high-charting hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at number two in 1982.
Professional Journey
Success had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to afford my initial property, having money and exploring, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago told with a music magazine.
But it also caused challenges. "Newfound wealth allowed we could afford substances to alleviate the boredom" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a truism for a good reason, because it works for so many bands."
During the party-filled existence, the duo were also drifting apart, but they succeeded to produce a second memorable record - the wayward, edgy and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out another album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to concentrate on individual endeavors.
Almond went on to have a successful solo career, including the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who combined dance music with melodic sounds over a enduring partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, releasing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another hiatus, they returned in recent years, issuing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was intended to be a final performance at the O2 Arena on September 30, that year.
Yet, they remained together, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball recently characterized the band's new album as a tribute to the NYC nightlife they frequented while recording their initial records.
He added that his time in medical care had influenced the band's sound.
"I experienced unusual memories when I was in and out of the hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a music magazine.
"The new songs are a digital reflection of the noises 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 died. It is scheduled for launch in the spring of 2026.