Review by Adam M on October 28, 2010.

This band has an icy feel that is somewhat distinctive in Black Metal. However, there is one outfit that performs this style to near perfection in a very similar manner and that is Immortal. The bands share a musical style very closely and thankfully Byfrost does a pretty good job at portraying the frostbitten Black Metal style.

So the adjective cold is a solid way to describe the material to be found on this disc. It carries forth a chilling feeling from the big riffs themselves. The band is again similar to Immortal in the huge chops they bring that actually share as much in common with the Thrash genre as the Black Metal one. Track after track the guitar licks make everything seem grand and larger than life. The last song 'Skull Of God' ends things off without vocals and fading away via some more massive riffs. It offers the appropriately cold ending to a disc that shows this icy Black Metal characteristic all the way through. It may not be the most original take on the genre you’ll find, but it is very effective.

For the band to grow in positive directions in the future, they need to incorporate compelling new ideas of their own and take a slightly more innovative direction. "Black Earth" is sufficient in delivering and Immortal style platter of Black Metal, but slightly lacks its own identity. The guitar work is certainly one of the strongest aspects to be found with this album. However, it is very derivative, which prevents it from being as authentic sounding as it could be. It is nonetheless a strong work that should be checked out by both Black Metal and Thrash fans.

Categorical Rating Breakdown

Musicianship: 8.5
Atmosphere: 8.5
Production: 8
Originality: 4
Overall: 8

Rating: 7.4 out of 10

Review by Alex on February 18, 2021.

Man I feel so sorry for Mausoleum, the sweethearts decided it would be a good idea to appear on a split with the Japanese death/doom butchers Anatomia. Not that their musical contribution on the split was lackluster or bad or anything negative, it's just Anatomnia's 3 songs on the split totally steal the show to a point in which it no longer appears to be a split between two bands. Mausoleum is from the United States and they've been around since 2001. They possess quite a wealth of experience within their lineup in which current members have had their hands in bands such as Incantation, Disma, Morpheus Descends and Geheena, hence there is no questioning the skills of this group. The 4 tunes they offer here are old school to the rotten core. You're going to love tracks like 'Voices From Beyond' and 'The Dark Abysmal'. Thrashing craziness, slugging doom metal movements and brass knuckle fist to the face mid tempo swings. You can't go wrong. For fans the thrash era during its deadly transformation into death metal will appreciate every bit of Mausoleum's work on the split.

Anatomia, what else can be said about the death/doom Godzilla that has not already been said. Every-time they raise their ugly heads from the swamps of Japan, the very same result could be guaranteed and evidently comes to fruition. Cavernous growling from the deepest depths of nowhere, bone crushing guitar motions and absolutely lifeless doom metal heaviness. Godless the incantations being 'Mangled Flesh', 'Rotting Innards' and the mystical, murky, mesmerizing yet inanimate 'In the Crypt'. The many faces of evil combined into 3 tracks of disastrous decadence. I hope this is a taste of what's to come from a future full length followup to Cranial Obsession, it's been too damn long since the release of that terror. Nonetheless, this split will suffice nicely until the next installment. It would also be great if Mausoleum can follow up with something along the lines of what they were able to offer here. Sick things seem to be on the horizon.

Rating: 8.6 out of 10