Ebony Tears

Stockholm, Sweden's Ebony Tears emerged in 1996 as peripheral figures within the New Wave of Swedish Death Metal, assembled by guitarist Conny Jonsson alongside vocalist Johnny Wranning after the latter's earlier, unsuccessful leadership of the lesser-known Miscreant. The band issued three albums of solid technical execution yet limited creative distinction: Tortura Insomniae in 1998, which included bassist Thomas Thun and drummer Iman Zolgharnian; A Handful of Nothing in 1999, featuring bassist Lennart Glenberg and drummer Richard Evensand; and Evil as Hell in 2001, which brought bassist Peter Kahm into the lineup. That final release marked their first association with Century Media and shifted away from the melodic approach of the prior two records toward a more brutal death metal direction, yet it likewise failed to elevate their stagnant trajectory and became their concluding statement. Side involvement in the thrash- and hardcore-inflected Dog Faced Gods further diluted their concentration, while Evensand later achieved the greatest visibility among the members through session work with Therion, Soilwork, and Chimaira.