Back in the days when the true dress code of any self respecting Metalhead was a denim jacket (adorned with patches), gigantic white basketball boots, and the obligatory mullet there were some bands who could garner your attention with a title way before you’d even heard a note played.When The Accused released More Fun Than An Open Casket Funeral around 86/87 there was a distinct grisly allure to such a title. We were still some way off of Obituary’s Slowly We Rot or Cannibal Corpse’s ludicrously titled songs, so the black humour of The Accused appealed immediately. Musically we’d heard such things as Slayer and SOD already, but somehow The Accused seemed much more extreme. The thrash of the riffs which had an undeniable groove were phenomenal, and then there were those vocals courtesy of Tommy Niemeyer which outstripped the likes of Tom Araya and Billy Milano with their rough edges and extreme guttural roar. When Death Metal came along later, the rumbling that emanated from John Tardy or the hysterical satanic rambling of Glen Benton, while brilliant in their own right, somehow didn’t quite hold a torch to Niemeyer. The thrash and hardcore influences aligned with Niemeyer’s vocals prophesised the blood soaked intensity of the coming of Death Metal scene.So there’s the history, The Curse of Martha Splatterhead brings us up to date with a band still going after 28 years. To say that their fire has waned would be hugely inaccurate ”“ The Curse of Martha Splatterhead is a ridiculously frenetic and enjoyable album. With the current resurgence of interest in Thrash you’d rather suspect that The Accused are due a re-appraisal by a new set of fans.'The Splatterhead' kicks things off and from here The Accused never pause for breath. Riffs cascade from one to the other with dizzying speed. 'Stomped To Death' careens around like an out of control freight train, but never once comes off the tracks. Plus, lets face it, 'Stomped to Death' is a fucking cool name for a song.'Bodies Are Rising' has one of those awesome moments in it that Anthrax used to label MOSH in their lyric sheets, where the pace slows just a little but you still have the urge to stomp something to death.For the most part though the pace here is an unrelenting display of speed. Drum patterns mix the frenzied but controlled approach you’d expect to find on a Slayer album and then growling away of the top of it is Niemeyer growling, screaming and emitting the voices of demons from his throat.'Avenue of the Dead' is probably a highlight here, starting off calmly with a basic clean guitar riff before exploding in a flurry of speed metal riffing, and roars from Niemeyer that sound not unlike the mudcaked preacher from Life of Brian. It’s blistering stuff.You should know what to expect from The Accused by now and even if it sounds like the kind of thing you’d give a wide berth, just know that The Curse of Martha Splatterhead is an invigorating listen from start to finish. It doesn’t get more cathartic than this.There is no doubt that there are very few bands that ever topped The Accused’s brutal riffing and ingenuity. That the likes of Slayer made bigger names for themselves is unfortunate, but perhaps now The Accused will find a new audience that discover the delights of the world of The Splatterhead and decide that this really is more fun than an open casket funeral (although admittedly open casket funerals are rarely hilarious occasions). 72%The Accused on MySpace