Emperor began as a trio in the spring of 1991 with Samoth (drums), Ihsahn (guitar/vocals) and Mortiis (bass)./ The band quickly recorded and circulated the now legendary "Wrath of the Tyrant" demo. It was this demo that brought them to the attention of the nascent Candlelight record label. A deal was inked, Samoth moved to guitar and Bard Faust was recruited for the now vacant drum stool. By the end of 1992, the band had recorded their half of the Emperor / Enslaved split CD which surfaced early the following year. Mortiis departed, and was later replaced by Tchort. In the summer of 1993 Emperor recorded their debut full-length album In the Nightside Eclipse. Various delays kept the album from being released until 1994. In autumn 1993 the media blitz exploded over church burnings, murders and violence related to black metal, and Emperor not only had two members head to jail but had to fend off unwanted attention. Alver replaced Tchort on bass, and Trym (ex. Enslaved) had replaced Faust on drums. This ended the productive and meaningful period of this band, which was formalized with the Reverence EP in 1996 which failed to reach the heights of the less important tracks on earlier works. Emperor has become known as one of the originators of symphonic Black Metal that Norway is internationally renowned for. The band sold well over 500,000 albums worldwide. Their cult album In the Nightside Eclipse has been ranked among albums like Slayer's Reign in Blood as a definitive masterpiece of heavy metal.