Hertrich and Winkler, childhood friends, formed Darkseed in 1991. Winkler had named the band after a favourite computer game he played. The band played metal and covered popular underground bands. A demo was recorded in 1992 and a show was played in Munich. A 1993 demo called Darksome Thoughts followed. What followed were several shows with Anathema (organized by Darkseed) and a MCD called Romantic Tales on Invasion Records of Berlin.
At this point the band unraveled and left only Stefan standing! With Harald rejoining, the band re-entered the studio and recorded Romantic Tales Part II for Invasion Records. New tracks and the Romantic II (never released by Invasion) constituted the band's first LP for Serenades.
Following a show with Pyogenesis and Crematory the band signed with Nuclear Blast and simultaneously kicked out Andy and saw Harald leave the fold. Shows with Lacrimosa, Amorphis, etc. followed. The band also played the Ten Years Nuclear Blast Festival with In Flames, Crematory and others. A Wacken appearance was cancelled in 1997 because the band was told not to expect any money or expenses to be paid!
Gilcher joined the band in 1998 and the band recorded Give Me Light. Unfortunately this period coincided with the death of Andy Wecker due to cancer following a one year battle. Rico and Willy left the fold in 1999 ostensibly due to a lack of live opportunities. In the summer of 2000 the band left Nuclear Blast in protest to a lack of promotion. In the summer of 2001 the band began recording its next album called Astral Adventure, but were not sure which label will issue it.
The Germans soon signed with Massacre Records and recorded Astral Adventures. In the summer of 2003, founder Stefan Hertrich left the band after eleven years. The singer had had to relocate because of his new job in the computer industry. Darkseed replaced singer Stefan Hertrich with Christoph Puhr-Westerheide formerly of Mislead. Hertrich would return a year later and the band would record its 2005 album at its own studio.
Darkseed has made a transition from metal to gothic over the years.