Pure and simple, this is a song about the city in which the Arkells met: Hamilton, Ontario.
Jackson Square is the large downtown mall, housing the city's main library and farmer's market (as well as the title of their first album). "Fast cash machines" is about the prevalence of payday lenders around the mall and how they prey on the vulnerable in the city.
The second stanza is about observations made while waiting for public transit. Most of the city's bus routes circle the mall, making it an important transit hub ("It's downtown where it all intersects"). "Some came down from the mountain" refers to the geological feature - the Niagara Escarpment - that runs through the city, creating a lower downtown and an upper city called "The Hamilton Mountain".
"College kids from the west" refers to the bands' alma mater, McMaster University on the western edge of the city. The singer - Max Kerman - is waiting for a bus heading in that direction, singing "As I wait for the bus coming from the east, There's generations of pride and elbow grease", referencing the industrial eastern end of the city that's deeply proud of its roots, but also rather economically-disadvantaged.
The third stanza references the city's perception, both internally and externally. "I heard this place was run by the mob, Buying everyone off down at city hall" references the long-standing belief among people in the city that local politicians are corrupt, with a large organized crime element in the city (the infamous Musitano and Papalia Families) once terrorizing local residents with restaurant bombings and intimidation.
References to "Oakville moms" and "Burlington dads" talks about the wealthy communities between Hamilton and Toronto that have a negative perception of the city, associating it with the crime and industry of the past. While the city has been changing dramatically over the past two decades, there are still those who denigrate Hamilton, characterized by the lines "If you're the kind with nothing to say, You heard about this party, but you're praying for rain."
Pure and simple, this is a song about the city in which the Arkells met: Hamilton, Ontario.
Jackson Square is the large downtown mall, housing the city's main library and farmer's market (as well as the title of their first album). "Fast cash machines" is about the prevalence of payday lenders around the mall and how they prey on the vulnerable in the city.
The second stanza is about observations made while waiting for public transit. Most of the city's bus routes circle the mall, making it an important transit hub ("It's downtown where it all intersects"). "Some came down from the mountain" refers to the geological feature - the Niagara Escarpment - that runs through the city, creating a lower downtown and an upper city called "The Hamilton Mountain".
"College kids from the west" refers to the bands' alma mater, McMaster University on the western edge of the city. The singer - Max Kerman - is waiting for a bus heading in that direction, singing "As I wait for the bus coming from the east, There's generations of pride and elbow grease", referencing the industrial eastern end of the city that's deeply proud of its roots, but also rather economically-disadvantaged.
The third stanza references the city's perception, both internally and externally. "I heard this place was run by the mob, Buying everyone off down at city hall" references the long-standing belief among people in the city that local politicians are corrupt, with a large organized crime element in the city (the infamous Musitano and Papalia Families) once terrorizing local residents with restaurant bombings and intimidation.
References to "Oakville moms" and "Burlington dads" talks about the wealthy communities between Hamilton and Toronto that have a negative perception of the city, associating it with the crime and industry of the past. While the city has been changing dramatically over the past two decades, there are still those who denigrate Hamilton, characterized by the lines "If you're the kind with nothing to say, You heard about this party, but you're praying for rain."