Flowing Tears was a German

gothic metal Gothic metal (or goth metal) is a fusion genre combining the aggression of heavy metal music, heavy metal with the dark atmospheres of gothic rock. The music of gothic metal is diverse with bands known to adopt the gothic approach to different ...

band founded in 2003 in

Wadgassen Wadgassen is a municipality in the district of Saarlouis, in Saarland, Germany. It is situated on the river Saar, approx. 6 km southeast of Saarlouis, and 15 km west of Saarbrücken. Religion Between 1135 and 1792 the Premonstratensia ...

. Their original name was Flowing Tears & Withered Flowers, which they used for their first several releases. The band's final lineup consisted of vocalist Helen Vogt, guitarist/keyboardist

Benjamin Buss Benjamin Buss (; born 7 October 1977), best known by his stage name Matthew Greywolf, is a German musician, best known as the lead guitarist and a main songwriter in the power metal band Powerwolf. He's married to a photographer Janine Buss. ...

, bassist David Vogt and drummer Stefan Gemballa.

History

1994–1999: Formation and first albums

The band formed in 1994 under the moniker Flowing Tears & Withered Flowers. Under the first name, they released a demo called Bijou in 1995, two full-length albums: ''Swansongs'' in 1996 and ''Joy Parade'' in 1998, and an EP named Swallow in 1999. On ''Swansongs'', Manfred Bersin contributed the male vocals. After the EP's release, the band abridged their name to "Flowing Tears".

2002–2004: ''Serpentine'' and vocalist change

With the release of '' Serpentine'' in 2002, the band would build on the work they did with ''

Jade Jade is an umbrella term for two different types of decorative rocks used for jewelry or Ornament (art), ornaments. Jade is often referred to by either of two different silicate mineral names: nephrite (a silicate of calcium and magnesium in t ...

'', adding a slightly more up tempo and a less melancholy sound. After the release of ''Serpentine'', Stefanie Duchêne left the band for personal reasons. The replacement vocalist became Helen Vogt. With a sound similar to that of ''Serpentine'', and Vogt's vocal similarities with Stefanie Duchêne's vocals, the band released their fifth studio album, '' Razorbliss''. The band toured with

After Forever After Forever was a Dutch symphonic metal band with strong progressive metal influences. The band relied on the use of both soprano vocals and death growls. In February 2009, it was announced that After Forever had disbanded. Singer Floor Jan ...

in April and May 2004. On 20 October 2004, just seven months after the release of ''Razorbliss'', two founding members of Flowing Tears, Björn Lorson and Cristian Zimmer (the first of whom was still in the band's lineup at the time), died in a car accident.

2008–2014: ''Thy Kingdom Gone'' and a hiatus

October 2008 saw the release of Flowing Tears' sixth full-length album, ''

Thy Kingdom Gone ''Thy Kingdom Gone'' is a concept album and the sixth full-length album by the German gothic metal band Flowing Tears. The cover art was made by Seth Siro Anton, who has previously worked with bands such as Moonspell, Soilwork, and Paradise Lo ...

''. It is a concept album containing 12 songs, along with artwork made by Seth Siro Anton, an artist who has done work for

Moonspell Moonspell is a Portuguese gothic metal band formed in 1992. The group released their first EP, '' Under the Moonspell'', in 1994 and followed up with their debut album, '' Wolfheart'', a year later. They quickly became the most recognizable meta ...

Soilwork Soilwork is a Swedish melodic death metal band from Helsingborg. They have released twelve studio albums. Formed in late 1995 by Björn Strid and Peter Wichers, the band was originally known as ''Inferior Breed''. In late 1996, they changed t ...

, and

Paradise Lost ''Paradise Lost'' is an Epic poetry, epic poem in blank verse by the English poet John Milton (1608–1674). The poem concerns the Bible, biblical story of the fall of man: the temptation of Adam and Eve by the fallen angel Satan and their ex ...

. The band is on hiatus according to a Facebook status update in January 2013 by Helen Vogt, she expressed that she does wish to record a new album someday. However, she announced in March 2014 that ''Thy Kingdom Gone'' would be the band's final album.

Members

Final lineup

* Helen Vogt – vocals (2003–2014) *

– guitars, programming, keyboards (1994–2014) * David Vogt – bass guitar (2007–2014) * Stefan Gemballa – drums (2002–2014)

Former members

* Lena Fischer – keyboards (1994–1995) * Björn Lorson – guitar (1994–1995) (deceased) * Manfred Bersin – vocals (1994–1998); guitar (1996–1999) * Christian Zimmer – drums (1994–1997) (deceased) * Stefanie Duchêne – vocals (1998–2003) * Eric Hilt – drums (1998–2000) * Mike Voltz – keyboards (2000) * Frédéric Lesny – bass (1994–2007)

Timeline

Discography

As Flowing Tears & Withered Flowers

*''Bijou'' (demo; 1995) *''Swansongs'' (1996) *''Joy Parade'' (1998) *''Swallow'' (EP; 1999)

As Flowing Tears

*''

'' (2000) *'' Serpentine'' (2002) *'' Razorbliss'' (2004) *''Invanity – Live in Berlin'' (2007) *''

'' (2008)

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Musical groups established in 1994 German musical quartets German gothic metal musical groups Musical groups disestablished in 2014 1994 establishments in Germany 2014 disestablishments in Germany