Sentenced
Encyclopedia
Sentenced was a Finnish heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...

 band that played melodic death metal
Melodic death metal
Melodic death metal is a heavy metal music style that combines elements from the New Wave of British Heavy Metal with elements of death metal. The style was developed during the early and mid-1990s, primarily in England and Scandinavia...

 in their early years. The band formed in 1989, in the town of Muhos
Muhos
Muhos is a municipality of Finland.It is located in the province of Oulu half an hour drive on route 22 from the city of Oulu, the capital of Northern Finland and is part of the Northern Ostrobothnia region. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water...

, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...

, and broke up in 2005.

Early years (1989-1991)

Sentenced started in 1989 as Deformity and changed their name to Sentenced in 1989, after a few line-up changes. The original line-up consisted of Miika Tenkula
Miika Tenkula
Miika Tenkula was a Finnish heavy metal musician. He was the lead guitarist and the main songwriter for the band Sentenced until it disbanded. He was also the band's original vocalist from 1989 to late 1992.-Death:...

 (lead guitar and vocals), Sami Lopakka
Sami Lopakka
Sami Lopakka is a Finnish guitarist. Lopakka was one of two guitarists for the band Sentenced until it disbanded. Lopakka was the band's main lyric writer and was also considered the spokesman for the band. Since 2007 he is once again active in KYPCK....

 (guitar), Vesa Ranta
Vesa Ranta
Vesa Ranta is a Finnish drummer. He was one of the original members of the band Sentenced. and has formed a new band named The Man Eating Tree. He is also a fine art photographer and owner of the Nuclear Nightclub live music club and bar in downtown Oulu....

 (drums), and Lari Kylmänen (bass). They recorded two demo tapes: When Death Joins Us... in 1990 and Rotting Ways to Misery in 1991. The band actually got their very first record deal (with the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 label Thrash Records) after their first demo.

Shadows of the Past (1991-1993)

In 1991, bassist Taneli Jarva joined the band, replacing Kylmänen just as the band was about to record their debut album, Shadows of the Past
Shadows of the Past (album)
-When Death Joins Us :#"Hallucinations" - 2:20#"When Death Joins Us" - 4:54#"Shadows of The Past" - 4:24#"Obscurity ..." - 5:10#"Desperationed Future" - 4:29-Rotting Ways To Misery :#"Rotting Ways to Misery" - 5:42...

. At that time, their musical style was fast, typical European melodic death metal
Melodic death metal
Melodic death metal is a heavy metal music style that combines elements from the New Wave of British Heavy Metal with elements of death metal. The style was developed during the early and mid-1990s, primarily in England and Scandinavia...

. In Spring 1992, they recorded a three-song promotional tape, Journey to Pohjola, and as a result got a deal with the Finnish Spinefarm Records
Spinefarm Records
Spinefarm Records is a Finland-based record label focusing mainly on heavy metal artists. In 1999, a sub-label titled Spikefarm Records was started by Sami Tenetz from Thy Serpent...

.

North from Here (1993-1994)

The second album, North from Here
North from Here
North from Here is the second album by the Finnish heavy metal band Sentenced. Lyrics of the album deal with Sentenced's typical melancholy, but some also deal with the mythology and history of Finnish warfare and the national romantic epic of Kalevala...

, was released in the spring of 1993, and later that year The Trooper EP
The Trooper (EP)
-Credits:*Sami Lopakka - Guitars*Miika Tenkula - Guitars*Taneli Jarva - Bass/vocals*Vesa Ranta - Drums...

. Jarva had assumed lead vocal duties using a different style than Tenkula's. It was North From Here that earned the band the attention of German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 record label Century Media Records
Century Media Records
Century Media Records is an Independent record label with offices in the United States, Germany, Australia, France, Italy, Sweden, Finland, and the United Kingdom.- Background :...

, and in 1994 Sentenced left Spinefarm in order to head toward a wider market with a new multi-album contract under Century Media.

Amok (1994-1996)

In 1995, Sentenced released their 'break through' album, Amok
Amok (Sentenced album)
Amok is the third album by the Finnish metal band Sentenced. It is also the last album with Taneli Jarva. The album was released through Century Media Records in 1995. It showed further departure from the band's early death metal stylings....

, which is considered by many to be their best work. Compared to earlier releases, the music had slowed down somewhat, acquiring a more melodic structure. The track "Nepenthe" was complemented with a music video and the band took to tour Europe in two full-length tours supporting Samael
Samael (band)
Samael is a industrial black metal band formed in 1987 in Sion, Switzerland.-Biography:Although much of their music from the mid-1990s onwards has incorporated electronic sounds which would best define their genre as industrial metal, they are an early 2nd Wave black metal band and an innovator for...

 and Tiamat
Tiamat (band)
-Biography:Initially, the band played straightforward black metal under the name Treblinka. After having recorded the album Sumerian Cry in 1989, vocalist/guitarist Johan Edlund and bassist Jörgen Thullberg parted ways with the other two founding members, and subsequently changed the name to Tiamat...

.

In autumn, the band released the Love & Death
Love & Death
-Credits :*Taneli Jarva - Vocals & Bass guitar*Miika Tenkula - Guitar*Sami Lopakka - Guitar*Vesa Ranta - Drums...

CD. Music-wise, it kept a fairly similar concept as Amok, as the songs had been written around the same time. Sentenced had achieved success in doom
Doom metal
Doom metal is an extreme form of heavy metal music that typically uses slower tempos, low-tuned guitars and a much "thicker" or "heavier" sound than other metal genres...

/death
Death metal
Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal. It typically employs heavily distorted guitars, tremolo picking, deep growling vocals, blast beat drumming, minor keys or atonality, and complex song structures with multiple tempo changes....

 markets, but Jarva left the band because of musical differences.

Down (1996-1998)

After Jarva's departure, Ville Laihiala
Ville Laihiala
Ville Laihiala is the current vocalist and guitarist of the Finnish Gothic metal group, Poisonblack. He was also the frontman for Sentenced from 1996 until the group ended their career in 2005.When joining Sentenced he was soon accepted by fans...

 (of Breed fame) joined the band in 1996, just weeks before the band was due to head to Germany to record their fourth album Down with producer Waldemar Sorychta
Waldemar Sorychta
Waldemar Sorychta , is a German heavy metal musician, songwriter, producer and artist who lives in Dortmund Germany since 1982.- Career :He initially worked with the German thrash metal band Despair, founded in 1986....

. Once again, the music became more melodic with a significant NWOBHM influence. During this time, bassist Sami Kukkohovi
Sami Kukkohovi
Sami Kukkohovi is a Finnish musician, best known as the bassist of the Finnish metal band, Sentenced. He joined the band in 1996, replacing Taneli Jarva, and stayed with Sentenced up until they disbanded in 2005. Firstly, he was only a session member on gigs, but after that he joined the band...

 also joined the band, but only as a session member on gigs. Later, in spring 1997 he was granted a permanent slot in the line-up.

Frozen (1998-2000)

Sentenced's fifth full-length album, Frozen
Frozen (album)
-Limited Edition:# "The Suicider"# "Dead Leaves"# "For the Love I Bear"# "Creep" # "Digging the Grave" # "Kaamos"# "Farewell"# "One with Misery"# "Grave Sweet Grave"# "Burn"# "Drown Together"...

, was also recorded at the Woodhouse Studios, and released in 1998, its style is similar to Down. Laihiala and Kukkohovi had become initiated into the band, so they participated in the composition process, resulting in the next album: Frozen
Frozen (album)
-Limited Edition:# "The Suicider"# "Dead Leaves"# "For the Love I Bear"# "Creep" # "Digging the Grave" # "Kaamos"# "Farewell"# "One with Misery"# "Grave Sweet Grave"# "Burn"# "Drown Together"...

. In 1999, a special edition of Frozen was released, containing a re-colored (gold) cover and rearranged track running order, with four cover songs
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...

 included.

Crimson (2000-2002)

The next Sentenced album to be released was Crimson
Crimson (Sentenced album)
- Credits :* Ville Laihiala – vocals* Miika Tenkula – guitar* Sami Lopakka – guitar* Sami Kukkohovi – bass guitar* Vesa Ranta – drums- Trivia :The digipak version and the 2007 reissue both contain the video for "Killing Me Killing You"....

in 2000. The single "Killing Me, Killing You" demonstrated the band's turn towards melodic death metal.The album was follewed by an extensive tour. That was the first time when the band visited USA.

The Cold White Light (2002-2004)

Two years after the release of The Cold White Light
The Cold White Light
- Credits :* Ville Laihiala – vocals* Miika Tenkula – guitar* Sami Lopakka – guitar* Sami Kukkohovi – bass guitar* Vesa Ranta – drums...

, the band was seen in a slightly different light, the lyrics displaying some self-irony and even a rare positive edge. They released the single "No One There" which peaked The Finnish Charts at Number 1 following that with an extensive USA tour alongside Killswitch Engage
Killswitch Engage
Killswitch Engage is an American metalcore band from Westfield, Massachusetts, formed in 1999 after the disbandment of Overcast and Aftershock. Killswitch Engage's current lineup consists of vocalist Howard Jones, bassist Mike D'Antonio, guitarists Joel Stroetzel and Adam Dutkiewicz, and drummer...

, Dark Tranquillity
Dark Tranquillity
Dark Tranquillity is a Swedish melodic death metal band from Gothenburg. They are one of the longest-standing bands from the original Gothenburg metal scene, and are one of the most integral pioneers of the melodic death metal genre of music....

 and In Flames
In Flames
In Flames is a Swedish heavy metal band from Gothenburg, formed in 1990. Since the band's inception in 1993, they have released ten studio albums and one live DVD...

.

After The Cold White Light
The Cold White Light
- Credits :* Ville Laihiala – vocals* Miika Tenkula – guitar* Sami Lopakka – guitar* Sami Kukkohovi – bass guitar* Vesa Ranta – drums...

, they released a CD single in 2003 along with songs by other bands on a four track compilation single that was dedicated to Oulun Kärpät
Kärpät
Oulun Kärpät is an ice hockey team in the SM-liiga based in Oulu, Finland. Their logo features a stoat ; "kärpät" is Finnish for stoats or ermines. The team has won five league championships .-History:...

, the ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

 team of the band's hometown, Routasydän (translates to "Frost Heart") remains the only song Sentenced sung in Finnish
Finnish language
Finnish is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland Primarily for use by restaurant menus and by ethnic Finns outside Finland. It is one of the two official languages of Finland and an official minority language in Sweden. In Sweden, both standard Finnish and Meänkieli, a...

, and cannot be found elsewhere. The song caused something of a stir in Finland, as several politicians reviewed the lyrics and purported them to contain Nazi
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...

 overtones, which the band has steadfastly refuted.

The Funeral Album (2005)

In early 2005, the band announced that their following release, The Funeral Album, would be their last. They performed farewell gigs during the spring and summer and ended with a final show on October 1, 2005 in their hometown Oulu
Oulu
Oulu is a city and municipality of inhabitants in the region of Northern Ostrobothnia, in Finland. It is the most populous city in Northern Finland and the sixth most populous city in the country. It is one of the northernmost larger cities in the world....

, Finland. The concert film Buried Alive
Buried Alive (Sentenced album)
Buried Alive is the live album by Finnish heavy metal band Sentenced, recorded during their last show at Club Teatria, Oulu, Finland, on October 1, 2005...

, directed by Mika Ronkainen
Mika Ronkainen
Mika Ronkainen is a Finnish film director from Oulu, Northern Finland. His best-known films are documentaries Screaming Men and Freetime Machos , the former being a portrayl of a Finnish screaming male choir Mieskuoro Huutajat, and latter being a portrayal of a rugby team which is allegedly the...

, filmed at the funeral gig, was premiered at Oulu Music Video Festival
Oulu Music Video Festival
Founded in 1994, Oulu Music Video Festival is an annual festival of music video, cinema, live music, and air guitar world championships, held in Oulu, Finland.- External links :* *...

 September 9, 2006. In 2005 The Funeral Album was awarded Gold, footage of the event is filmed in the Buried Alive DVD!

Sentenced have been awarded Platinum in the band's native Finland for their posthumous live DVD Buried Alive. The trophy was handed out to the band's former members at the Century Media 20th anniversary party at the Tavastia club in Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...

 on August 14, 2008, where Poisonblack
Poisonblack
Poisonblack is a Finnish heavy/gothic metal band led by singer/guitarist Ville Laihiala, known for his vocals with the band Sentenced from 1996 - 2005...

 and labelmates Norther
Norther
Norther is a Finnish Melodic Death Metal band from Helsinki, Finland.-History:Norther was originally formed by Kristian Ranta, Jukka Koskinen, Tuomas Planman, Petri Lindroos and Toni Hallio in the year 1996 after various of early stage band formations. The band kicked into gear with its debut...

 and Kivimetsän Druidi
Kivimetsän Druidi
Kivimetsän Druidi is a folk metal band from Kouvola, Finland. 'Kivimetsän Druidi' is Finnish for "druid of the stone forest".-Band history:Their lyrics are based on the fantasy novel Joni Koskinen is writing. The novel tells a story from The Land of the Crystal Mountain and Stone Forest.'KmD'...

 played exclusive gigs to properly celebrate this special event.

Guitarist and founding member Miika Tenkula died on February 19, 2009. On 26 June 2009 it was announced by his family that Miika died from an attack caused by a genetic heart condition that he had for many years previous to the break-up. He is buried in the Kirkkosaari cemetery in his hometown Muhos, Finland. [3]

On November 13, 2009 Sentenced released a box set of 16 CDs and 2 DVDs chronicling their entire career in a coffin-shaped box. The box-set also included rare and previously unreleased tracks.

In 2011 a tribute CD was released by couple of Russian bands. The CD is called "Russian Tribute To Sentenced"

Final line-up

  • Ville Laihiala
    Ville Laihiala
    Ville Laihiala is the current vocalist and guitarist of the Finnish Gothic metal group, Poisonblack. He was also the frontman for Sentenced from 1996 until the group ended their career in 2005.When joining Sentenced he was soon accepted by fans...

     – vocals (1996–2005)
  • Miika Tenkula
    Miika Tenkula
    Miika Tenkula was a Finnish heavy metal musician. He was the lead guitarist and the main songwriter for the band Sentenced until it disbanded. He was also the band's original vocalist from 1989 to late 1992.-Death:...

     (deceased) – guitar
    Guitar
    The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...

     (1989–2005), vocals (1989–1992)
  • Sami Lopakka
    Sami Lopakka
    Sami Lopakka is a Finnish guitarist. Lopakka was one of two guitarists for the band Sentenced until it disbanded. Lopakka was the band's main lyric writer and was also considered the spokesman for the band. Since 2007 he is once again active in KYPCK....

     – guitar (1989–2005)
  • Sami Kukkohovi
    Sami Kukkohovi
    Sami Kukkohovi is a Finnish musician, best known as the bassist of the Finnish metal band, Sentenced. He joined the band in 1996, replacing Taneli Jarva, and stayed with Sentenced up until they disbanded in 2005. Firstly, he was only a session member on gigs, but after that he joined the band...

     – bass
    Bass guitar
    The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....

     (1996–2005)
  • Vesa Ranta
    Vesa Ranta
    Vesa Ranta is a Finnish drummer. He was one of the original members of the band Sentenced. and has formed a new band named The Man Eating Tree. He is also a fine art photographer and owner of the Nuclear Nightclub live music club and bar in downtown Oulu....

     – drums
    Drum kit
    A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....

     (1989–2005)

Previous members

  • Lari Kylmänen – bass (1989–1991)
  • Taneli Jarva
    Taneli Jarva
    Taneli Jarva is a Finnish musician. Currently, he is the vocalist for The Black League, which he formed in 1998. He is best known as vocalist/bassist in Sentenced, which he left in 1995 because he did not like the melodic direction the band were heading into, and therefore decided to move on to...

     – bass and vocals (1991–1996)
  • Tuure Heikkilä - drums (1988–1989)

Session members

  • Niko Karppinen – bass (live) (1995–1996)
  • Tarmo Kanerva – drums (summer 1999)
  • Marco Sneck - keyboards
  • Vorphalack – backup vocals (1996)

Studio albums

  • Shadows of the Past
    Shadows of the Past (album)
    -When Death Joins Us :#"Hallucinations" - 2:20#"When Death Joins Us" - 4:54#"Shadows of The Past" - 4:24#"Obscurity ..." - 5:10#"Desperationed Future" - 4:29-Rotting Ways To Misery :#"Rotting Ways to Misery" - 5:42...

    (1991)
  • North from Here
    North from Here
    North from Here is the second album by the Finnish heavy metal band Sentenced. Lyrics of the album deal with Sentenced's typical melancholy, but some also deal with the mythology and history of Finnish warfare and the national romantic epic of Kalevala...

    (1993)
  • Amok
    Amok (Sentenced album)
    Amok is the third album by the Finnish metal band Sentenced. It is also the last album with Taneli Jarva. The album was released through Century Media Records in 1995. It showed further departure from the band's early death metal stylings....

    (1995)
  • Down (1996)
  • Frozen
    Frozen (album)
    -Limited Edition:# "The Suicider"# "Dead Leaves"# "For the Love I Bear"# "Creep" # "Digging the Grave" # "Kaamos"# "Farewell"# "One with Misery"# "Grave Sweet Grave"# "Burn"# "Drown Together"...

    (1998)
  • Crimson
    Crimson (Sentenced album)
    - Credits :* Ville Laihiala – vocals* Miika Tenkula – guitar* Sami Lopakka – guitar* Sami Kukkohovi – bass guitar* Vesa Ranta – drums- Trivia :The digipak version and the 2007 reissue both contain the video for "Killing Me Killing You"....

    (2000)
  • The Cold White Light
    The Cold White Light
    - Credits :* Ville Laihiala – vocals* Miika Tenkula – guitar* Sami Lopakka – guitar* Sami Kukkohovi – bass guitar* Vesa Ranta – drums...

    (2002)
  • The Funeral Album
    The Funeral Album (Sentenced album)
    - Credits :* Ville Laihiala – vocals* Miika Tenkula – guitar* Sami Lopakka – guitar* Sami Kukkohovi – bass guitar* Vesa Ranta – drums...

    (2005)

Singles

  • "Killing Me Killing You" (1999)
  • "No One There" (2002)
  • "Routasydän" (2003)
  • "Ever-Frost" (2005)
  • "The Glow of 1000 Suns/Amok Run" (2008)

Compilation

  • Story: A Recollection (1997)
  • The Coffin (2009)
  • Manifesto Of Sentenced (2009)

Demos

  • When Death Joins Us... (1990)
  • Rotting Ways to Misery (1991)
  • Journey to Pohjola (1992)
  • Amok Runs (1994)

Reissues

  • Crimson (2007)
  • Down (2007)
  • Frozen (2007)
  • North From Here (2008)
  • Shadows Of The Past (2008)

Videography

  • "Nepenthe" (1994)
  • "Noose" (1997), directed by Sökö Kaukoranta
  • "The Suicider" (1998)
  • "Killing Me Killing You" (1999), directed by Pasi Pauni
  • "No One There" (2002), directed by Pete Veijalainen
  • "Ever-Frost" (2005), directed by Mika Ronkainen
    Mika Ronkainen
    Mika Ronkainen is a Finnish film director from Oulu, Northern Finland. His best-known films are documentaries Screaming Men and Freetime Machos , the former being a portrayl of a Finnish screaming male choir Mieskuoro Huutajat, and latter being a portrayal of a rugby team which is allegedly the...

  • "Despair-Ridden Hearts" (2006), directed by Mika Ronkainen
    Mika Ronkainen
    Mika Ronkainen is a Finnish film director from Oulu, Northern Finland. His best-known films are documentaries Screaming Men and Freetime Machos , the former being a portrayl of a Finnish screaming male choir Mieskuoro Huutajat, and latter being a portrayal of a rugby team which is allegedly the...


External links

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