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Subhumans (Canadian band)
Encyclopedia
The Subhumans are a punk
band from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
that formed in 1978.
Known by pejorative
, punk rock
nicknames, original members were known simply as "Useless" (Gerry Hannah
), "Dimwit" (Ken Montgomery), "Wimpy" (Brian Roy Goble
) and "Normal" (Mike Graham).
In 1981, Hannah left the band and gradually became involved with a small group of underground activists calling themselves Direct Action. In the alternative media they were referred to as the Vancouver 5, but in the mainstream press they were dubbed the Squamish 5. The group, composed of ecologists and feminists, were responsible for a number of actions, including the 14 October 1982 bombing of the Litton Industries
plant in Ontario
which made guidance systems for cruise missile
s. The Litton bombing hurt several plant workers and three police officers were also injured. While Gerry was not part of the Litton bombing, he supported it, and did take part in other actions, as well as planning to rob a Brinks truck to fund future actions. He was arrested on 20 January 1983, along with the four other members of Direct Action. Many benefits were arranged for the group by people such as Jello Biafra
and Joey Shithead of D.O.A. to pay lawyers fees but, in the end, Hannah pled guilty to avoid years in prison. He received a 10 year sentence and was released after serving 5 years. During his time in prison, he began writing a column for the fanzine
Maximum RocknRoll
which helped maintain his connection to the punk scene. A number of years after his release he was the subject of a documentary film made by B.C. filmmaker Glen Sanford, called Useless.
After Hannah left the band, the Subhumans re-formed with Ron Allan on bass. After Imagawa left the band, Dimwit was briefly back with the Subhumans before Randy Bowman joined in his place. With the line up of Wimpy Roy, Mike Graham, Ron Allan, and Randy Bowman, the Subhumans recorded the album No Wishes, No Prayers for Black Flag
's SST Records
. Ron Allan and Randy Bowman later went on to form the Vancouver band The Scramblers.
The Subhumans finally broke up, with the singer joining D.O.A.
on bass. However, their songs have been covered by many other bands, including D.O.A., NoMeansNo
, MDC
, Overkill
, Jingo de Lunch
and Vancouver all-women band
Cub
, and they are highly regarded within the punk community.
In 2005, the Subhumans reunited with the following lineup: Gerry Hannah
on bass, Jon Card
(ex-Personality Crisis
, SNFU
and D.O.A.
) on drums, Wimpy Roy on vocals and Mike Graham on guitar. They signed to Alternative Tentacles
and G7 Welcoming Committee Records
. A new album, New Dark Age Parade, was released in September 2006. Death Was Too Kind, a compilation of the band's early singles and EPs, was released in 2008.
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
band from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
that formed in 1978.
Known by pejorative
Pejorative
Pejoratives , including name slurs, are words or grammatical forms that connote negativity and express contempt or distaste. A term can be regarded as pejorative in some social groups but not in others, e.g., hacker is a term used for computer criminals as well as quick and clever computer experts...
, punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
nicknames, original members were known simply as "Useless" (Gerry Hannah
Gerry Hannah
Gerald Richard Hannah is the bass player for the punk rock group The Subhumans and was also a member of the militant environmental group Direct Action, also known as the Squamish Five and the Vancouver Five .Squamish Five carried out a political campaign of "direct actions", including the Litton...
), "Dimwit" (Ken Montgomery), "Wimpy" (Brian Roy Goble
Brian Roy Goble
Brian Roy Goble, also known as Wimpy Roy or Brian "Sunny Boy Roy" Goble, is a Canadian singer and musician. He played bass for many Vancouver punk bands. First with Stone Crazy, Brian then went to punk rock, playing bass with The Skulls before becoming lead singer for The Subhumans when The Skulls...
) and "Normal" (Mike Graham).
History
Dimwit quit the band shortly after their first 7" was released to join the Pointed Sticks and was replaced by Koichi Imagawa, also known as Jim Imagawa, on drums.In 1981, Hannah left the band and gradually became involved with a small group of underground activists calling themselves Direct Action. In the alternative media they were referred to as the Vancouver 5, but in the mainstream press they were dubbed the Squamish 5. The group, composed of ecologists and feminists, were responsible for a number of actions, including the 14 October 1982 bombing of the Litton Industries
Litton Industries
Named after inventor Charles Litton, Sr., Litton Industries was a large defense contractor in the United States, bought by the Northrop Grumman Corporation in 2001.-History:...
plant in Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
which made guidance systems for cruise missile
Cruise missile
A cruise missile is a guided missile that carries an explosive payload and is propelled, usually by a jet engine, towards a land-based or sea-based target. Cruise missiles are designed to deliver a large warhead over long distances with high accuracy...
s. The Litton bombing hurt several plant workers and three police officers were also injured. While Gerry was not part of the Litton bombing, he supported it, and did take part in other actions, as well as planning to rob a Brinks truck to fund future actions. He was arrested on 20 January 1983, along with the four other members of Direct Action. Many benefits were arranged for the group by people such as Jello Biafra
Jello Biafra
Jello Biafra is an American musician, spoken word artist and leading figure of the Green Party of the United States. Biafra first gained attention as the lead singer and songwriter for San Francisco punk rock band Dead Kennedys...
and Joey Shithead of D.O.A. to pay lawyers fees but, in the end, Hannah pled guilty to avoid years in prison. He received a 10 year sentence and was released after serving 5 years. During his time in prison, he began writing a column for the fanzine
Fanzine
A fanzine is a nonprofessional and nonofficial publication produced by fans of a particular cultural phenomenon for the pleasure of others who share their interest...
Maximum RocknRoll
Maximum RocknRoll
Maximum rocknroll is a widely distributed, monthly not-for-profit fanzine based in San Francisco, USA. It features interviews, columns, and reviews from international contributors...
which helped maintain his connection to the punk scene. A number of years after his release he was the subject of a documentary film made by B.C. filmmaker Glen Sanford, called Useless.
After Hannah left the band, the Subhumans re-formed with Ron Allan on bass. After Imagawa left the band, Dimwit was briefly back with the Subhumans before Randy Bowman joined in his place. With the line up of Wimpy Roy, Mike Graham, Ron Allan, and Randy Bowman, the Subhumans recorded the album No Wishes, No Prayers for Black Flag
Black Flag (band)
Black Flag was an American punk rock band formed in 1976 in Hermosa Beach, California. The band was established by Greg Ginn, the guitarist, primary songwriter and sole continuous member through multiple personnel changes in the band...
's SST Records
SST Records
SST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
. Ron Allan and Randy Bowman later went on to form the Vancouver band The Scramblers.
The Subhumans finally broke up, with the singer joining D.O.A.
D.O.A. (band)
D.O.A. is a hardcore punk band from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. They are often referred to as the "founders" of hardcore punk, along with Black Flag, Bad Brains, Teen Idles, and Minor Threat. Their second album Hardcore '81 was thought by many to have been the first actual reference to...
on bass. However, their songs have been covered by many other bands, including D.O.A., NoMeansNo
Nomeansno
NoMeansNo is a Canadian progressive punk rock music group originally from Victoria, British Columbia and now located in Vancouver.The band has never had, nor have they seemed to pursue, strong mainstream success, but they do have a devoted underground following in North America and Europe...
, MDC
MDC (band)
MDC is an American hardcore punk band formed in Austin, Texas in 1979. The band were subsequently based in San Francisco, California, and are currently based in Portland, Oregon. MDC originally formed as The Stains before changing their name...
, Overkill
Overkill (band)
Overkill is an American thrash metal band, formed in 1980 in New Jersey. They have gone through many line-up changes, with singer Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth and bassist D.D. Verni remaining from the original lineup. Along with Anthrax , the band is one of the most successful East Coast thrash metal...
, Jingo de Lunch
Jingo de Lunch
Jingo de Lunch is a German punk band from Kreuzberg, Berlin. Most members had already a solid musical background, for instance Sepp Ehrensberger had played in the Berliner cult punk rock band called Vorkriegsjugend , and also in Zerstörte Jugend with Tom Schwoll. Yvonne Ducksworth had previously...
and Vancouver all-women band
All-women band
An all-female band is a musical group composed of female musicians exclusively. A distinction is made here with a girl group, in which the members are solely vocalists, though this terminology is not universally followed.-1920s-1940s:In the Jazz Age and during the 1930s, "all-girl" bands such as...
Cub
Cub (band)
Cub was an indie rock band from Vancouver, British Columbia that formed in 1992 and disbanded in 1997. They played a melodic, jangly form of pop punk that was dubbed "cuddlecore" by some music critics...
, and they are highly regarded within the punk community.
In 2005, the Subhumans reunited with the following lineup: Gerry Hannah
Gerry Hannah
Gerald Richard Hannah is the bass player for the punk rock group The Subhumans and was also a member of the militant environmental group Direct Action, also known as the Squamish Five and the Vancouver Five .Squamish Five carried out a political campaign of "direct actions", including the Litton...
on bass, Jon Card
Jon Card
Jon Card is a Canadian punk rock drummer. He is the current drummer in the long-standing punk bands SNFU and The Subhumans.-Career:Card grew up in Calgary, Alberta and formed his first band, Plasticide in his late teens. In 1981 he joined the Winnipeg-based band Personality Crisis, with whom he...
(ex-Personality Crisis
Personality Crisis (band)
Personality Crisis was a punk rock band formed in 1979 in Winnipeg, Canada. Personality Crisis is widely credited with having a more complex sound than most other punk rock bands of the early 1980s while retaining the power of the early 1980s punk sound....
, SNFU
SNFU
SNFU is a Canadian punk rock band formed in 1981 in Edmonton, Alberta and later relocated to Vancouver, British Columbia. They have released nine full-length albums and are cited as a formative influence on the skate punk sub-genre....
and D.O.A.
D.O.A. (band)
D.O.A. is a hardcore punk band from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. They are often referred to as the "founders" of hardcore punk, along with Black Flag, Bad Brains, Teen Idles, and Minor Threat. Their second album Hardcore '81 was thought by many to have been the first actual reference to...
) on drums, Wimpy Roy on vocals and Mike Graham on guitar. They signed to Alternative Tentacles
Alternative Tentacles
Alternative Tentacles is an independent record label originally based in San Francisco, California and was established in 1979. It was originally used as the label name by the Dead Kennedys for the self-produced single "California Über Alles", and after realizing the potential for an independent...
and G7 Welcoming Committee Records
G7 Welcoming Committee Records
G7 Welcoming Committee Records is a Canadian independent record label started by Chris Hannah and Jord Samolesky of punk band Propagandhi, and their friend Regal in 1997...
. A new album, New Dark Age Parade, was released in September 2006. Death Was Too Kind, a compilation of the band's early singles and EPs, was released in 2008.
Albums
- Incorrect Thoughts LP on (Friends Records, 1980)
- No Wishes, No Prayers LP on (SSTSST RecordsSST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
, 1983) - New Dark Age Parade LP (Alternative TentaclesAlternative TentaclesAlternative Tentacles is an independent record label originally based in San Francisco, California and was established in 1979. It was originally used as the label name by the Dead Kennedys for the self-produced single "California Über Alles", and after realizing the potential for an independent...
and G7 Welcoming Committee RecordsG7 Welcoming Committee RecordsG7 Welcoming Committee Records is a Canadian independent record label started by Chris Hannah and Jord Samolesky of punk band Propagandhi, and their friend Regal in 1997...
, 2006). - Same Thoughts, Different Day CD/LP (Alternative Tentacles, 2010) (Note: this is a re-recording of the "Incorrect Thoughts" LP, issued in response to legal challenges that blocked the band's attempt to reissue that album).
Singles, 7"s, EPs
- "Death To The Sickoids"/"Oh Canaduh" 7" (1978)
- Untitled 12" EP (Quintessence RecordsQuintessence RecordsQuintessence Records started in 1976. Quintessence was formed by Pickwick International Inc. as a budget label. Pickwick’s trademark for Quintessence was filed on December 10, 1976 with the initial Q made to look like a clef symbol. The label was devoted to the licensed reissue of historic...
, 1979) - "Firing Squad"/"No Productivity" 7" (Quintessence Records, 1980)
- Subhumans Limited Edition Demo EP (2005)
Compilations
- "Death To The Sickoids" and "Urban Guerilla" on Vancouver Complication (1979)
- "Out of Line" and "Behind The Smile" on Vancouver Independence, Friends Records (1980)
- "Slave To My Dick" on Let Them Eat Jellybeans! (Alternative TentaclesAlternative TentaclesAlternative Tentacles is an independent record label originally based in San Francisco, California and was established in 1979. It was originally used as the label name by the Dead Kennedys for the self-produced single "California Über Alles", and after realizing the potential for an independent...
, 1981) - "No Productivity" on Killed By Death vol. 2
- "Slave To My Dick" on Last Call: Vancouver Independent Music 1977-1988 (Zulu Records, 1991)
- "Firing Squad" on Faster & Louder: Hardcore Punk, Vol. 2, (Rhino EntertainmentRhino EntertainmentRhino Entertainment Company is an American specialty record label and production company. It is owned by Warner Music Group.-History:Rhino was originally a novelty song and reissue company during the 1970s and 1980s, releasing compilation albums of pop, rock & roll, and rhythm & blues successes...
, 1993) - Pissed off... with good reason CD (1996)
- Death Was Too Kind (Alternative TentaclesAlternative TentaclesAlternative Tentacles is an independent record label originally based in San Francisco, California and was established in 1979. It was originally used as the label name by the Dead Kennedys for the self-produced single "California Über Alles", and after realizing the potential for an independent...
, 2008)
Covered by
- DOA covered "Fuck You" on the Right To Be Wild single (1983) (and then included the song in their compilation Bloodied But Unbowed, 1984), covered "No Productivity" on the "Murder" LP (1990), and also covered "Behind the Smile" for the Terminal City Ricochet film soundtrack (1990).
- Frank Frink Five "Slave To My Dick (Polka Version)" on "Van-Cover" compilation, Garbanzo Bean Productions, 1986
- MDCMDC (band)MDC is an American hardcore punk band formed in Austin, Texas in 1979. The band were subsequently based in San Francisco, California, and are currently based in Portland, Oregon. MDC originally formed as The Stains before changing their name...
covered "The Big Picture" in their Smoke SignalsSmoke Signals (MDC album)Smoke Signals is an album by the hardcore punk band MDC. The original vinyl release appeared on the band's own Radical Records label in 1986. It was finally reissued on CD in 2001 on the We Bite label and distributed by Plastic Head...
LP (1986). - OverkillOverkill (band)Overkill is an American thrash metal band, formed in 1980 in New Jersey. They have gone through many line-up changes, with singer Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth and bassist D.D. Verni remaining from the original lineup. Along with Anthrax , the band is one of the most successful East Coast thrash metal...
covered "Fuck You" in the !!!Fuck You!!!!!!Fuck You!!!!!!Fuck You!!! is an EP released by thrash metal band Overkill in 1987. Consisting of a cover version of the song "Fuck You" , the EP also featured 5 live tracks recorded at The Phantasy Theatre in Cleveland, Ohio...
EP (1987) and performs the song live. - Jingo de LunchJingo de LunchJingo de Lunch is a German punk band from Kreuzberg, Berlin. Most members had already a solid musical background, for instance Sepp Ehrensberger had played in the Berliner cult punk rock band called Vorkriegsjugend , and also in Zerstörte Jugend with Tom Schwoll. Yvonne Ducksworth had previously...
covered "Fuck You" in the various artists' compilation LP 20 Berlin bullets (1990). - NoMeansNoNomeansnoNoMeansNo is a Canadian progressive punk rock music group originally from Victoria, British Columbia and now located in Vancouver.The band has never had, nor have they seemed to pursue, strong mainstream success, but they do have a devoted underground following in North America and Europe...
covered "Oh Canaduh!" in a 1991 single. - Screeching WeaselScreeching WeaselScreeching Weasel is an American punk rock band originally from Chicago, Illinois. The band was formed in 1986 by Ben Weasel and John Jughead.Since their formation, Screeching Weasel have broken up and reformed numerous times with numerous line-up changes. Ben Weasel has been the only constant...
recorded a cover of "Fuck You" that eventually wound up on their 2-Disc Thank You Very LittleThank You Very LittleThank You Very Little is a compilation by Screeching Weasel. It contains b-sides, rarities, and a live show. The title was taken from a line in the movie Caddyshack...
compilation.
See also
- List of musicians in the first wave of punk music
- Music of VancouverMusic of VancouverVancouver, a city in British Columbia, is one of the major cultural centres of Canada. The music of Vancouver is diverse, representing the many peoples that live in the city, ranging from classical and modern avant-garde orchestras and composers through a wide range of pop, rock, rap, jazz, world...
- List of bands from British Columbia
- List of bands from Canada