A lot of people wonder why we named our band Half Past Four. We can explain.
 
The story dates back to the cold winter of 1999 when the first line-up of yet unnamed band emerged. There were four of us: Les and Constantin (who both played guitars at the time), plus their two buddies Daniel (drums), and Sam (bass). Back than it was just a group of friends who were united by their common culture and language. Performing mainly for the Russian community of Toronto, we didn’t want to limit ourselves to some specific genre (an attitude that’s still with us). Therefore, we needed a name that was as neutral and as devoid of meaning as possible. The quest for band name was hard and tiring, resulting in many a night of uncontrollable laughter and literature puns. Remember, we needed a name that will sound and be semantically equivalent in both our languages (English and Russian). Here’s how it happened:

We were brainstorming all night (mixed with drinks and guitars) at Sam’s place early 1999. As the night grew older, we decided to split. Constantin wondered what time it was, to which Sam answered: “It’s half past four.” Les froze momentarily and then, with his signature ‘eureka’ gesture said: “That’s it! You got it!”
 
The name turned out to be more universal than we could imagine. Both am and pm versions of the time are neither night nor day, suggesting murky, unstable and changing image of something that is suspended in constant evolvement. Eventually it even found its place in one of the songs (Springtime Reggae), where a man, returning home early in the morning (you’ve guessed the time!) is reflecting on the changing nature around and within him.
Later, as Les and I took the spin towards progressive rock, I concocted a catchphrase which, although never got used, really, was something to the effect of: “Half Past Four – music beyond four quarters”.
 
Many more possible name explanations were offered later on. Thus one of our friends that enjoys strictly medicinal pot pointed out that 4:30 is 10 min past 4:20 - "Its when it hits you..." he said. See? He got it! :) As a result, we even printed a whole bunch of rolling papers with our logo on the box to support our friends (please inquire about them at our next gig).

As a piece of useless, yet hilarious trivia, here’s another explanation, courtesy of urbandictionary.com:

There you have it, in all its geeky glory. :)

Les & Constantin