From The Metal Archives, "In Mesopotamian mythology, Marduk was a Babylonian storm god who created the earth and sky from the slain body of the great dragon Tiamat who, with her consort Abzu, created the first generation of gods. Marduk then slew their son Kingu and used his blood mixed with earth to create humanity. He was revered as the patron deity of Babylon. Morgan has stated that many have misunderstood his rationale behind choosing the name MARDUK for his band. According to him, the purpose of selecting it was to promote a blasphemous irony, as the deity Marduk represented light, but the band's message is the complete opposite of that. In other words, it was intended as a mockery."

The album has ten songs. The title track is first. The sound eases in slowly, then explodes like a quarter stick. The song is harrowing and thick with backing elements. It segues into the short "Heart of the Funeral," which has a similar sound. One thing that I am usually concerned about with these veteran Black Metal acts is that they don't push themselves to create something different. "Blood of the Funeral" supports this point. They are at the top of their game when it comes to performance, but the songwriting needs some work.

"Shovel Beats Sceptre" is the first song with some variation in the opening. Spoken words sound like they come from Satan himself. From there, it's a slow grind with occasional bell strikes. "Coffin Carol" is another super-charged song with thick bones and overgrown roots. Again, it is harrowing, but does not break away from the pattern of the FWOBM bands. Seguing into "Marching Bones," heavy footsteps in a unified rhythm lead off the song. From there however, it's another aggressive dose of a similar sound. "Year of the Maggot" begins with frightening background elements and a riff that is revving up. Once it reaches the surface, it does not stop in its heavy assault.

"Red Tree of Blood" is more of the same, and many of the songs have run together. This is my biggest complaint on an album. "As We Are" closes the album. There are finally some tones other than anger and aggression...this song has some depressive tones and even uses some other musical instruments. But it's too little, too late. Overall, this is clearly a veteran band in the scene, and their performance is tight. But their songwriting needs a kick in the ass. On some level, they are too used to their sound, and don't challenge themselves enough. The result is a mediocre effort, unfortunately.