"In a genre torn between elitists and innovators that so often alienate each other, "Si Monumentum Requires, Circumspice" is an immense breath of fresh air that unites the two. This is underground and minimalist enough to appease the traditional fans, yet it's also creative and unique enough to make you re-think what potential black metal really can have. Deathspell Omega carries a message of theistic Satanism that is marvelously translated into their music as well as their lyrics. Their subject matter is among the most intelligent in black metal, writing in a philosophical manner that uses, twists and perverts Christianity in a brilliantly ironic way. Their music is also very fitting and complementary to their message, sounding as if it is being played "through" them as vessels for an unseen force. You have never heard anything like this before, I am quite certain. This album is truly a strange birthing for Deathspell Omega, because if you have heard their previous 2002 release, there was nothing too special about it that might remotely indicate that this monstrosity would soon follow. "Si Monumentum" employs dissonance in ways that are utterly dark and still so beautiful and mysterious. There is a great degree of variety as well, balancing out between blasting ferocious mayhem and slower-paced mesmerizing riffs that give tremendous depth to this material. Perhaps the highlight of this album is "Carnal Malefactor", the 11-minute epic that builds up in sickening, tormented style, briefly releases the tension for a few minutes of eerie chanting and then resumes it's decimating form once more. In brutal truth, any description of this album will fall quite short of the actual impact gained from listening to it yourself. I feel it is also best absorbed as a whole, and not as individual tracks, so I recommend giving yourself ample time to experience "Si Monumentum" without interruption. If you have any appreciation for dark extreme metal, it will be well worth it."