Heave, lads! Ho, lads!
Forget the comforts of home, you're a nomad
We've lost so much since we first started
Are our hearts cold or are we coldhearted?
So pray to your lord or your foreman
That the Sun might rise in the morning
They told us hell was warm
But our empire fell for shelter from the storm
On the run from London town
Nothing left but rubble there to plunder now
Torn asunder, buried underground
Beneath the tundra and a hundred weight of brothers drowned
Heh, now we're gonna need another crown
So huddle round, hunker down, man the shovels, plough
And every hundred paces, pray and lay another down
Another mother, son or lover lost — the frost is out
For lonely drifters in the snow drifts, won't be scuppered now
Stay devout, tough it out, 'til the Sun is out
Trust the censor, shun dissenters, hunt and flush them out
Keep the faith and trust there's grace behind the thunderclouds
Or fall in line and march in time against the climate, proud
What are we becoming now?
Is this the life we prayed for?
Time is running out
There's nothing left but labour
We write our future in the ice like it was pen and paper
Leave for future generations more than just a generator
We must never waver, this is the price we pay for
Safety one day for our children on the path we pave them
And in the end, know that history depends
On an empire forged in the flames of what we gave up
Heave, lads! Ho, lads!
Forget the comforts of home, you're a nomad
We've lost so much since we first started
Are our hearts cold or are we cold hearted?
So pray to your lord or your foreman
That the Sun might rise in the morning
They told us hell was warm
But our empire fell for shelter from the storm
Turn your collars to the wind as our odyssey begins
Feel the ice creeping in 'til your bones sing
And as the tempest descends and your ears ring
That's the bells of the church that we're preaching
Now, grieving is a luxury we spun to weave our cloaks
Comfort, warmth and plenty feel like centuries ago
The storm won't crush our spirits like a tent beneath the snow
Every upper lip gets stiff at 20°C below
No gold or silver, coal's the only thing of worth to me
The only precious metal to our name would be the mercury
That fragile strip of burgundy that ever hurtles to the deep
Alerting us as Mother Nature's taken every cursed degree
I've nothing left, my only treasure is my word to keep
Keep bellies filled, treat the ill and preserve the heat
But can I keep the peace as we bleed through adversity?
How's a shepherd supposed to lead without a dog to herd the sheep?
These choices that I make, I make to save our nation
What's a little sawdust when you face annihilation?
Is childhood so sacred? Or just resources wasted?
Every value that I thought I had debased and razed to save us
Heave, lads! Ho, lads!
Forget the comforts of home, you're a nomad
We've lost so much since we first started
Are our hearts cold or are we coldhearted?
So pray to your lord or your foreman
That the Sun might rise in the morning
They told us hell was warm
But our empire fell for shelter from the storm
Growing up, they told us no two snowflakes are the same
And everyone's a wonder, something not to take in vain
Of Mother Nature's beauty, of the universe at play
Seems that she's abstained from duty, left us here and turned away
Fingers splintered into kindling and hearts as dark as coal
As heat and hope are dwindling, we march towards our goal
Committed to the hymns we sing, so after all is told
The generations after us aren't cast into the cold
So burn us in the furnace, let our souls ignite the flames
Use our bones to stoke the embers, use our blood to oil the chains
We are nothing now but engines rending flesh to find a way
And as we fall, we know we die to light a brighter day
Every shiver will deliver us deliverance in time
Burn the incense of our innocence and in a sense we thrive
Pray the future that we're building will be worth its weight in lives
So take heed, but take no pity, as the city must survive