The Subhumans sprang from the moist and foetid undergrowth of the British Columbian rain forest in the spring of 1978, and were soon a vital part of the wild, raucous, and tempestuous Vancouver punk scene. Often political with a satiric edge, in 1980 the band recorded its debut album, "Incorrect Thoughts" for another small Vancouver label and toured through much of the U.S. and Canada, gigging with such bands as Black Flag, Husker Du, Minor Threat, the Dead Kennedys, X and Bad Brains.
In 1981, original bassist Gerry Hannah and drummer Jim Imagawa left the band, and were replaced by bassist Ron Allan and drummer Randy Bowman for a second album, "No Wishes No Prayers", recorded for SST Records. Just prior to its release, front man Brian Goble quit to become DOA's bass player and the original incarnation of band played its last gig in the fall of 1982.
After leaving the band Gerry Hannah became one of a group of political activists called Direct Action, whose frustration lead them toward armed struggle. Among other actions, the group blew up an environmentally unfriendly hydroelectric substation on Vancouver Island and bombed the Litton plant near Toronto, which manufactured parts for the American cruise missile, a "first strike" nuclear weapon. In 1983, Canadian authorities eventually arrested the group, known in the press as the Squamish Five, and Gerry was sentenced to ten years in jail. He was released after serving five years.
In 1995, Gerry and Brian reformed the band for a western Canadian tour, with Jon Williams on guitar and David Macanulty on drums, and the following year the band released a "best of" CD, "Pissed Off . . . With Good Reason", on the Essential Noise/Virgin label.
In 2005, the band reformed to write and record again. This time, the line-up includes original members Brian Goble on vocals, Gerry Hannah on bass, and Mike Graham back on guitar, with punk veteran and powerhouse drummer Jon Card (formerly with SNFU/DOA) on drums. The Subhumans recorded a full-length CD of new material, "New Dark Age Parade", which was released in September 2006 on Alternative Tentacles Records in the U.S. and G7 Welcoming Committee Records in Canada.
Since the summer of 2005, the band has played numerous shows both in Vancouver and throughout western Canada. In the fall of 2006, the band did a cross-Canada tour in support of the new record, venturing as far east as Montreal. In the fall of 2007, the band played a series of shows in western Canada including 2 shows in Whitehorse! Plans for more extensive touring, possibly including shows in Europe and the US, are in the works.
As well, the band intends to re-release much of its old material as soon as possible (a lot of it is currently unavailable except as bootlegs). The first of the re-releases, "Death Was Too Kind" came out in November 2008 on Alternative Tentacles Records.
Early in 2010, the band released a new album, "Same Thoughts, Different Day", on Alternative Tentacles (Virus 404), featuring re-recorded versions of everything on their original album "Incorrect Thoughts" plus an EP's-worth of extra songs.
