Other option: diatrype bullata - if on dead willow. (we assumed beech)

Dead branches and trunks of beech, rarely other hardwoods

Inedible — hard, woody crust

• ▸ Small, cushion-shaped to flattened, black crust fruit bodies in bark cracks
• ▸ Angular outline, bursting through the bark
• ▸ Often arranged in rows following the bark fissures
• ▸ Tiny spore chambers (perithecia) opening through minute raised pores

A very common bark fungus of beech that looks like small black cushions and is easy to overlook.