“Hello City”

Since I'm going to Halifax in 3 days (to see PEARL JAM!!! *ahem* sorry) I figured I'd look up the origin of some of the less obvious references in the Barenaked Ladies' song “Hello City”. From their FAQ: Link.

1. What city is being referred to in "Hello City"?

   Halifax, Nova Scotia.

   Steve didn't exactly enjoy much of their first taste of Halifax, Nova Scotia. Much of his feelings were documented in the lyrics of "Hello City," a caustic, and cautionary tale that opens the band's 1992 debut release, Gordon.
   I think is harbour town is waist deep and sinking fast...
   "When we were in Halifax," Steven begins, "we played at this bar called The Lower Deck, where they had mostly Celtic music, being as there are mostly sailors in there, drinking."
   The sun didn't shine on Barrington Street...
   "We stayed at this place called The Carlton Hotel, on Barrington Street, which was upstairs from this metal bar called Rosa's. It's no longer there, but it was a total flophouse."
   The doom and gloom of the hotel room...
   "The room that Ed and I shared had four beds. One of them was up against the wall and another had a mattress falling through its frame. There was a bathtub with no shower. It was just gross."
   Climb down three flights to the streetlights and the bar fights, we're just taking in the sights...
   "Halifax on a weekend, you can't go anywhere without seeing somebody bleeding, somewhere. To get to the street from our terrible room, you had to walk down three or four flights of stairs and then step over some bleeding body. We were young, none of us were real drinkers, Ed didn't drink at all, and the whole drink culture of Halifax was just shocking to us."
   I wish this seaside beer hall would just sink into the bay...
   "So we were playing at The Lower Deck, this sailor's watering hole, and no one would pay attention. I remember taking a picture from the stage and when I got the pictures back, there was nobody looking at the camera."
   Hello city, you've found an enemy in me...
   "I remember thinking I hate this place, I hate this place."
   Maybe I caught you at a bad time, maybe I should call you back next week...
   "We've actually had great times there since, but that's because we learned the "when in Rome" axiom. You know the expression, 'do at the Romans do?' So 'when in Halifax,' we learned to 'do as the Haligonians do,' which in this case means drinking and bleeding."
   I hope tomorrow that I wake up in my own bed...
   

   (from Barenaked Ladies - Public Stunts Private Stories by Paul Myers. Pages 48-49)

By the time we reach St. John's we're going to be wrecked, I just know it. It's gonna rule.

PS. STONE!!!!

PPS. I listened to Gordon for the first time in far too many years tonight. I recommend you do the same.