Quick Facts
Biography
Miika Tenkula (6 March 1974 – 18 February 2009) 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
After Sentenced disbanded, Tenkula withdrew from publicity. He died of a sudden heart attack caused by genetic heart disease at his home in the town of Muhos 18 February 2009. His former band members remembered him by publishing an obituary in the official Sentenced webpage on 22 February 2009:
Sentenced mourned the loss of Miika Tenkula, "a dear friend, a truly remarkable artist and musician, and the very soul of what used to be Sentenced. Rest now, brother – in your music and our hearts you will live forever".
An open memorial was held in the Club Teatria in the city of Oulu on 18 April 2009. In the music containing ceremony was also show Buried Alive - concert movie, that was filmed in the same location in 2005, where Miika Tenkula and the Sentenced held their last concert before disbanding. In the ceremony, music from Miika Tenkula's favourite artists was heard, but also cover versions from the Sentenced songs performed by various Finnish artists and bands.
Finnish melodic death metal band Insomnium's song "Weighed Down with Sorrow" from their 2009 album Across the Dark is dedicated to Tenkula.