Ground-breaking Estonian musician Henry Laks dies
Singer, musician and songwriter Henry Laks has died at the age of 62, ERR's Menu portal reports.
Laks passed away at his home in Pääsküla, his son, Joonas Laks, announced Wednesday.
As the front-man of Seitsmes Meel, he played a key role in the Singing Revolution of the late 1980s, which led up to the Restoration of Estonian Independence.
His work inspired countless people in Estonia and elsewhere, Joonas Laks said.
Prior to forming Seitmes Meel, Laks was a member of several bands, starting with punk act Pelikan, in which he performed while still in high school at a time when Estonia was under Soviet occupation and rock bands were often singled out for persecution by the authorities.
Later on, he primarily worked on solo projects, both in music and with his poetry – of which he published three collections in the 1990s and 2000s – and painting and illustrating.
He also long collaborated fruitfully with his friend, composer Alo Mattiisen.
A gallery of ERR archive material concerning Laks, and video clips of some of his most well-known songs, are below.
p>"Ei ole üksi ükski maa" (1987)
"Henry Laksi laulud" (1996)
"Lood ja laulud. Henry Laks" (2015)
"Kontserdisaalis. Eestimaa laul 1988" (2019)
Editor: Andrew Whyte