The name is a reference to the 1985 horror/comedy, Return of the Living Dead. The band originally formed as a side project of Leeds band And None of Them Knew They Were Robots, but have gained a higher profile than And None of Them Knew They Were Robots, who have since split up.

The band play in the 1980s crossover style, with lyrics about zombies and cannibalism, and are heavily influenced by zombie movies. On-stage, they dress as zombies and the drummer dons a Mexican wrestling mask (a homage to the character in Brian Clement's Meat Market films with whom he also shares the name El Diablo). As part of this on-stage persona, band members claim to be members of the living dead.