Following a short prelude, the two guitarists Miika Tenkula and Sami Lopakka as well as drummer Vesa Ranta came together in the provincial town of Oulu in the cold north of Finland in the year 1989 to baptize their death metal newborn, and gave it the name SENTENCED. Only one year later, this child of death let loose its first startling scream in the shape of the demo "When Death Joins Us..." (1990). When its voice developed an extremely charismatic touch with the recruiting of singer and bass-player Taneli Jarva, a first record-deal followed soon, which led to the release of the traditional death metal debut "Shadows Of The Past" (1991). Two years later SENTENCED took a more melodic turn on "North From Here" (1993) and created a true milestone of their deadly genre. Just a small amount of time elapsed until this rapidly growing whelp honoured its Iron Maiden roots with "The Trooper" (1993).
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(Hunt or be hunted)
The days are hot
and the dead lie unburied on the field
So the wind brings the smell of blood;
- so heavy and sweet
They're back again
- we came so near and yet so far
They're all around
and if they come any closer...
We're done
Keep My Grave Open, open wide
Keep My Grave Open, I'm longing to die
- Cool and peaceful, and far from the battlefields
...and opened just for me
The moon shuts her eyes
and great black clouds cover the sky
Rain bathes the ground
while we live in darkness like the blind...