The Subhumans

The Subhumans are a Canadian punk band from Vancouver, active from 1978 to the present. They emerge from the Vancouver punk scene and are associated with punk and punk rock, with a strong link to anarcho-punk and hardcore punk.

Early years

The band forms in Vancouver in 1978 and becomes part of the city’s fast-moving punk underground. Their early songs often take a political view, but with satire and irony rather than straightforward slogans. In 1980 they record their first album, Incorrect Thoughts, for a small Vancouver label and tour widely across Canada and the United States. During that period they play with Black Flag, Hüsker Dü, Minor Threat, the Dead Kennedys, X and Bad Brains.

Line-up changes and first split

In 1981 original bassist Gerry Hannah and drummer Jim Imagawa leave the group. They are replaced by Ron Allan on bass and Randy Bowman on drums for a second album, No Wishes No Prayers, which is recorded for SST Records. Shortly before that release, singer Brian Goble leaves to join D.O.A. as bass player. The original version of the band plays its final show in the fall of 1982.

Gerry Hannah and later activity

After leaving the band, Gerry Hannah becomes involved with the political activist group Direct Action. The group carries out bombing actions against a hydroelectric substation on Vancouver Island and the Litton plant near Toronto, which makes parts for the American cruise missile. In 1983 Canadian authorities arrest the group, known in the press as the Squamish Five, and Hannah receives a ten-year prison sentence. He is released after serving five years.

Reformations and later recordings

The Subhumans reform in 1995 for a western Canadian tour, with Gerry Hannah and Brian Goble joined by Jon Williams on guitar and David Macanulty on drums. The following year they release the compilation Pissed Off . . . With Good Reason on Essential Noise/Virgin. In 2005 the band reforms again to write and record new material, with Brian Goble on vocals, Gerry Hannah on bass, Mike Graham on guitar, and Jon Card on drums. Jon Card has previously played with SNFU and D.O.A. The group records New Dark Age Parade, which appears on Alternative Tentacles in the United States and G7 Welcoming Committee Records in Canada.