Cardinal is a sort of underground all star band with members from well known Dutch acts like Putrefied, Necrology, Consolation, Nembrionic, Kringspiertyfus and Unlord. So it`s no wonder “Baptized In Cum” kicks major ass.

The band was formed in 2002 and the line-up was completed in 2003 so it`s still very young but with members who have been in the scene for more than 15 years it`s an easy task to create this vicious little monster I’m playing in my walkman right now. Little is not to be taken literally by the way, because the playing time is more than 45 minutes.

Besides the normal tracks, Cardinal decided to include some “bonus” material in the form of the demo for this mini-cd, the same songs but recorded in a very undergroundish way. A lot less comfortable to listen to, but a nice gesture indeed. At the end of the cd are two better sounding re-recorded versions of two of the tracks of the demo which makes a grand total of 15 tracks. Can this still be called a mini-cd?

The first 7 tracks form the actual “Baptized In Cum” and the first track, which is also the title track, kicks in with a blast. It`s good to hear Manoloxx`s voice again. I still see Consolation`s “Brave Melvin From The Southern Point” as one of the better cd`s in my collection and that for a big part due to the characteristic voice of Manoloxx.

The music also reminds me a lot of Consolation, which isn`t a big surprise if you know that the man behind most songs of Consolation, Dennis, also wrote the music for “Baptized In Cum”.

So is Cardinal a copy of Consolation? No. Although there are similarities, Cardinal is more straightforward death metal oriented, especially if you compare it with Consolation`s swansong “Stahlplaat”, which was very experimental and flirted with black metal. “Baptized In Cum” is nothing more or less than extreme deathmetal/grindcore.

My favorite track is “First Anal Communion”; it has a great chorus line which keeps on echoing in my head. The sound is perfect for this kind of music. It’s not as polished as other productions but with this kind of music I don’t think it’s the most important thing. Everything sounds allright though, compliments to Dennis, who did the engineering, production and mixing.

There`s one anomaly to be found on this demo and that the track “Rise Above All We Despise”, a haunting mid tempo keyboard driven track which reminds me of Nile.

Cardinal already have plans to record a full length cd entitled “Horrific” in 2004 but I don`t know on what label yet.

So for 8 Euros you get a nice professional package and a shitload of music. Holland spawns forth yet another quality extreme metal band. Look out for the full length in 2004!