The Hardship Post was a Canadian alternative rock band that formed in St. John’s, Newfoundland in 1992. The band moved to Halifax, Nova Scotia, during the Halifax Pop Explosion of the early 1990s. The band originally consisted of vocalist and guitarist Sebastian Lippa, bassist Mike Kean and drummer Matt Clarke. Initially signed to Murderecords, they released the EPs Mood Ring and Hack in 1993, and undertook their first cross-Canada tour to support the recordings. Mike Pick would replace Kean on bass in mid-1993. In late 1994, they signed to Sub Pop, which released their full-length album Somebody Spoke in 1995. Around that time Clarke left the band, and was replaced by Alyson MacLeod of Jale. This formation of the band would be known as "The New Hardship Post", which released one single on Squirtgun Records, in 1996. This iteration of the band provided a track on the various artists compilation Pet-kout-koy-ek: Songs For A River; the compilation was also released in 1996. Hardship Post won as Best Alternative Band at the 1994 East Coast Music Awards, and were nominated for the same award in 1996. At the Juno Awards of 1996, Somebody Spoke was a nominee for Best Alternative Album.