With their eclectic influence and scintillating musicianship, Subhumans were never going to be content to trot out anarcho punk-by-numbers, but no one was really prepared for the progressive brilliance of their sophomore album, "From The Cradle To The Grave." Whilst the A-side contains nine short-sharp bursts of energized punk gleefully embracing all points of the spikey spectrum, from the breakneck thrash of "Reality Is Waiting For A Bus" to the ominous dirge of "Wake Up Screaming," it is the ambitious title track that really captures the imagination: its sprawling, 16+ minute running time telling the sorry tale of the human life cycle across a myriad of dynamic acts. Committed to tape by the visionary John Loder at Southern Studios at the tail end of 1983, it was released in April 1984 to widespread acclaim - and only kept from the No. 1 spot in the independent charts by New Order.
