The Redemption of Transvaal

A portrait of my old neighbourhood in The Hague, where I lived until it was up for demolition and subsequent gentrification.

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posted by goodnewsfortheinsane (9 comments total)

Gnfti- For a moment I heard the Smiths & a bit of dinosaur jr.
Ashes to ashtray.
posted by isopraxis at 9:34 PM on February 15, 2007

There's worse things one can tell me! Thanks isopraxis.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 6:27 AM on February 16, 2007

Wow. I especially like the second half when you get all fired up. Great song. Forgive me for mentioning something so silly, but I'm really curious as to how you would sound with an accent or in your native language. (Guessing that English isn't yours.) Any chance of posting something like that?
posted by snsranch at 4:22 PM on February 16, 2007

It's not silly at all, snsranch. What do you mean exactly by "with an accent or in your native language"? My native tongue would obviously be Dutch, but I'm not sure I get the accent bit. I don't have anything in Dutch to post for now, however.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 7:29 PM on February 18, 2007

The accent thing is just that you don't seem to have one. You sound as though you could have grown up with me here in California. Not being at all familiar with Dutch or how English sounds with a Dutch accent, I am just very curious. In any case, thanks for posting stuff. It's REALLY good.
posted by snsranch at 5:02 PM on February 19, 2007

Thanks so much goodnewsfortheinsane. I haven't been to Transvaal for many years (decades even), but I have fond memories of the neighborhood. Visiting friends at the Hoefkade, having a beer at cafe Willy at the market. Are you around long enough to remember that some families had horses in their backyards and just rode through the streets? Good times, I share your melancholia. Next time record a song for the Mefites in Hagueneze.
posted by ouke at 4:01 AM on February 20, 2007

Oh, I get it now. Here's a post of me speaking (English): heavily edited though, it was just a rough draft of a podcast idea (back when we didn't have a MeFi podcast). I'm glad you like the music.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 4:02 AM on February 20, 2007

(That was for snsranch, it's a rare occurence for comments to cross on Mefi Music.)

ouke, this young whippersnapper surely hasn't been around long enough to remember that! Moreover, I spent my formative years in the bland, comfy suburbia of Zoetermeer - I really only moved to The Hague in 2004.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 4:06 AM on February 20, 2007

OK goodnewsfortheinsane, so you're a SweetLakeCity kid. And indeed, we are talking ancient history here, but it all adds to the melancholy of the song, thanks again.
posted by ouke at 5:07 AM on February 20, 2007