The talented musician, a key member of the innovative 1980s synth-pop band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with singer Marc Almond, the team achieved a global success with their version of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in 1984, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a classic of synth-pop.
He later founded the innovative techno group The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball died peacefully in his rest at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in Henley-on-Thames.
At that show, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, after a period of health issues.
"I ended up injure myself quite a bit," he stated in 2023. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my spine and cracked about multiple ribs and broke my wrist."
After catching pneumonia and developing sepsis, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in the hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "a great place mentally" over the summer, as he was developing a fresh record with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication next year.
"He was focused and so happy with the latest project that we literally finished only a short time ago," stated the singer in a heartfelt message.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was all set to be such an positive year for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he heard the completed album and felt that it was a great piece of work."
Almond described his collaborator as "an exceptionally talented creative mastermind", stating: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our body of work.
"Thank you Dave for being an significant aspect of my existence and for the songs you gave me. I couldn't be where I am without your influence."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, shared his condolences, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a partnership with someone is distinct from joining a group, the bond is very tight," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many extraordinary, extraordinary, life-affirming moments as a team. Thank you, Dave."
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 grew up in Blackpool with his new family his caregivers, who altered his first name from his birth name to his adopted name, together with his younger sister Susan, who was also adopted.
He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both studying art. Inspired by a shared love of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the very year, and promptly recorded an extended play.
The duo were an unusual pairing: Ball was the reserved musician, hunched over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all glitter and makeup; but they attained a rare creative synergy.
Ball had developed a interest with electronic instruments after viewing the band Kraftwerk perform on a television science show a popular series, and started to combine dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling single of 1981, selling 21 million copies worldwide. Alongside successful tracks 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 full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which produced two additional high-charting singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at the second position in 1982.
Success had its upsides. "I loved being able to afford my first home, having money and travelling, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball recently told with a publication.
But it also presented problems. "Newfound wealth meant we could afford newfound drugs to alleviate the boredom" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball explained.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it works for so many bands."
During the party-filled existence, the pair were also drifting apart, but they managed to produce a second classic album - the unconventional, edgy and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out another album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to concentrate on other projects.
Almond went on 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 acid house with ambient pop over a enduring collaboration.
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, producing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another break, they reappeared in 2018, issuing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was intended to be a final performance at the large venue on September 30, that year.
However, they remained together, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball recently described the band's new album as a tribute to the New York club scene they visited while recording their first two albums.
He added that his period in hospital had shaped the group's music.
"I had unusual memories when I was in and out 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 head from those days.
"In parallel, it's about the experiences we had in the 80s."
The last versions were finished only a short time before Ball passed away. It is due for launch in Spring 2026.
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