CURRENT MISSIONS

Protesting the ongoing atrocities in Gaza, having marched in London on 11/11/2023 and 25/11/2023 demanding a lasting ceasefire, which has still failed to materialise.

Gigging, not sure why, perhaps I'm making up for lost time for when I lived in Vietnam and its absence on the Global North 'World Tour' circuit - that and the Covid times. Gigs/Festivals attended recently:

https://www.songkick.com/users/abandonstrings
+
8-10/9/2023: Chimpyfest - New Cross Inn, London
21/10/2023: Means to an End Festival - 1 in 12 Club, Bradford
8/6/2024: Mammoth Tank, TCCL et al. - The Underground, Bradford

PREVIOUS MISSION

Took part in a charity fundraising event over the month of July called Blackhall Mill To Bogotá. I cycled a minimum of 10km a day to raise money for the Casa Taller Las Moyas centre in Bogotá, Colombia. In memory of my late friend Sam Ling Gibson, all proceeds went to the community centre that was so dear to him and will help maintain and improve both the centre and the lives of the children who frequent it. Joined by 63 other runners/walkers/cyclists, we travelled the equivalent distance from Sam's hometown of Black Hall Mill in the UK to Bogotá, Colombia and back again, a total of 16,891km (at least). I hit my 310km target mid-July and finished off with 750km cycled and over £8,000 raised collectively, though we're still accepting donations here:

https://www.samlinggibsontrust.org/

ABOUT ME

Well here's a brief autobiography: I was born in the depths of Stoke-on-Trent in the mid-late eighties. Lots of pottery used to be made there, and now it's not. Two years later the Berlin Wall came down and it was the end of history, only it wasn't Mr Fukuyama. Eventually memories started forming and school happened, the 90s came and went and college arrived. Went to Uni in Bradford to study Creative Writing and ended up staying there about a decade in the aftermath of the great recession, maybe should've left earlier, but there were some fun times. Also visited the Baltic States a lot and formed a band out there. That ended. Visited Europe a lot throughout this period. Went sailing in a tall ships race, realised I was a land lubber and never sailed again. Went to Vietnam to build on my teaching experience as an ESL teacher, stayed for about 3 years and visited a bunch of places in South East Asia and then the pandemic happened, so carved out an existence of living in the same house almost endlessly. I kept myself going with the notion that "one day, like all things, this will come to pass, government incompetence willing". Couchsurfing was on standby but now I'm cranking up the gears on this rusty machine held together with masking tape and WD40.

I like to play and record music, both my own and other people's together with a little video editing. Have some links:

https://www.youtube.com/@abandonstrings

https://soundcloud.com/abandonstrings

https://abandonstrings.bandcamp.com/

Also like photography, have some (poorly attended to) links:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/danbrassington

https://www.behance.net/danbrassington

PHILOSOPHY

''I see it all perfectly; there are two possible situations - one can either do this or that. My honest opinion and my friendly advice is this: do it or do not do it - you will regret both.''
- Kierkegaard

Generally I live by the golden rule and try to stay consistent with my ethics and morals for its own sake, not a sense of reward, though I can't deny that likely subconsciously comes into the equation somewhere. I live my life because I was born and now exist (I think at least), and in paraphrasing Carl Sagan, I am the universe looking back at itself and so are you!

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

By coming to a couch near you! (and/or accepting guests if convenient or if you have your own sleeping bag or something similar.)

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I used to stay around my band mate's flat in Latvia every half year so we could do band things. We also made food with dill. Our band related things also took us to Estonia twice, on one of those occasions we couchsurfed after playing a gig. Otherwise I've couchsurfed at friends houses in my prior adopted city of Bradford and surrounding lands, sometimes waking to a face of pen scribbles, other times just the beautiful feeling of hangover. I now live in Vietnam, I may have bedsurfed here once. Scratch that, I now live in the UK, again, due to Covid and its cost of living hangover. Fun times!

Interests

Writing
Literature
Reading
Drumming
Pianoing
Guitaring
Glockenspieling
Playing music in general
Listening to music in general
Having a strong interest and opinions in/about music
Philosophy
Politics
Social issues
Culture
Art
Science and Technology
Particle Physics
Quantum Physics
Cosmology
Astrophysics
Architecture
Television
Film Buffing
Not playing any sports of any kind
Scepticism
Gaming
Secular Humanism
Debate
Non-Euclidean Art and Design

• arts
• culture
• writing
• literature
• architecture
• design
• photography
• ethics
• dining
• politics
• technology
• reading
• music
• drums
• logic
• philosophy
• physics
• psychology
• science
• sociology

Music, Movies, and Books

Do you have all day? If so:

Music

1-Speed Bike
65 Days of Static
2814
And So I Watch You From Afar
A Winged Victory for the Sullen
Abra
Adebisi Shank
Adem
Adolf Plays The Jazz
Aidan Baker
Air
Aix Em Klemm
Amiina
Amon Tobin
Ancestors
And So I Watch You From Afar
Andrew Weatherall
Angelo Badalamenti
Animal Collective
Aphex Twin
Apparat
Arab Strap
Arcade Fire
ARP
Arvo Part
At the Drive-in
Atoms for Peace
Audioslave
Auf Der Maur
Autechre
Bardo Pond
Bark Psychosis
Barry Lynn
Bat for Lashes
Battles
Beach House
Beck
Beggars Opera
Belong
Ben Folds
Ben Folds Five
Ben Frost
Ben Woods
Benga
Biffy Clyro
Bjork
Black Moth Super Rainbow
Black Sun Empire
Black Van
Blanck Mass
Bloc Party
Blockhead
Boards of Canada
Bonobo
Boris
Bowery Electric
Boxcutter
Bram Meindersma + David O'Reilly
Brian Eno
Brian McBride
Broken Social Scene
Burial
Calexico
Caribou
Caspa and Rusko
Cast
Childish Gambino
Chopin
Christina Vantzou
Cid Rim
Cliff Martinez
Clint Mansell
cLOUDDEAD
Clown Core
Colin Stetson
Cornelius
Cotoba
Crackout
Craig Armstrong
Daft Punk
Dale Cooper Quartet and The Dictaphones
Dan Le Sac vs Scroobius Pip
Dananananaykroyd
Datach'i
Deadmau5
Death From Above 1979
Death Grips
Death in Vegas
Debussy
Digitalism
DJ Food
DJ Format
DJ Scotch Bonnet
DJ Shadow
DJ Vadim
Do Make Say Think
Doctor Jeep
Dolphins
Don Caballero
Dorian Concept
Doves
Drive-By Argument
Dub Juddah
Earth
Easy Star All Stars
Easyworld
Ed Cox
Eels
Efrim Manuel Menuch
Elbow
Electrate
Elizabeth
Elkupe
Eluvium
Erik Satie
Errors
Eskmo
Esmerine
Explosions in the Sky
Fabio Orsi
Faithless
Falconetti
Fatboy Slim
Feist
Fields
Final + Fear Falls Burning
Flying Lotus
Four Tet
Fridge
From Monument To Masses
Fuck Buttons
Fuzz
Gay Dad
Godflesh
Godspeed You! Black Emperor
Gold Panda
Goldfrapp
Gonjasufi
Grafiti
Grails
Grouper
Guillemots
Gum Takes Tooth
Hailo
Hammock
Hans Zimmer
Hashshasin
Hecq
Henge
Helios
Hidden Orchestra
Higuma
Holst
Holy Fuck
Holy Sons
Home
Hot Chip
How To Disappear Completely
Hudson Mohawke
Humanfly
Ian Brown
Interpol
Isis
iTal Tek
Jaga Jazzist
Jakob
Jambinai
James
James Holden
Jamie Woon
Jarvis Cocker
Jessica Moss
Jimi Hendrix
Joe Hisaishi
Johann Johannsson
Jon Brion
Jon Hopkins
Jonny Greenwood
Jonsi and Alex
Juffage
Juliana Barwick
Julio Bashmore
Jurassic 5
Justice
Kavinsky
Kelpe
Kendrick Lamar
Khun Narin
Kim Jung Mi
King Creosote and Jon Hopkins
Kings of Convenience
Kyle Bobby Dunn
Kyuss
Labradford
Land of Kush
Lawrence English
LCD Soundsystem
Led Zeppelin
Leenalchi
Leftfield
Lemon Jelly
Leonard Roseman
Les Rythmes Digitales
Liam Lynch
Library Tapes
Lilacs and Champagne
Lobe
Locust Toybox
Long Fin Killie
Loscil
Low
Ludovico Einaudi
Luke Abbott
Luke Vibert
M.I.A
M83
Manic Street Preachers
Martyn
Massive Attack
Master Musicians of Bukkake
Mastodon
Max Cooper
Max Richter
Maximo Park
Maybeshewill
Metaphi
Michael Andrews
Million Dead
Mint Royale
Moby
Moderat
Modeselektor
Mogwai
Moondog
Mother Mallard's Portable Masterpiece Company
Mount Eerie
Mount Kimbie
Mr Scruff
Mr Oizo
Muse
Muslimgauze
My Bloody Valentine
Nadja
Nathan Fake
Natural Snow Buildings
Neurosis
Nick Cave
Nils Frams
NOFX
Noisia
Nope
Nosaj Thing
Ocean Colour Scene
Oceansize
Oceantied
Ochre
Oiseaux Tempete
Olafur Arnalds
Orkestar Zirkonium
Oskar
Pajo
Pan American
Panda Bear
Pantha Du Prince
Pelican
Petrels
pg.lost
Philip Glass
Picore
Pink Floyd
Plaid
Portishead
Pram
Public Enemy
Pulp
Purple Traitors
Quantic
Queens of the Stone Age
Rachel's
Radiohead
Rage Against the Machine
Raging Speedhorn
Ratatat
Raymond Scott
Richard Lacy
Rimsky Korsakov
Rival Schools
Rolling Stones
Roni Size
Royksopp
Rudolph Rocker
Rueben
Run The Jewels
Runners
Russian Circles
Ryuichi Sakamoto
Saltland
Sam's Backroom
Saul Williams
Screaming Trees
Se So Neon
Sensorama
Serge Gainsbourg
Set Fire To Flames
Shalabi Effect
Shield Your Eyes
Shitmat
Sigur Ros
Silver Apples
Silver Mt. Zion
Simian
Simian Mobile Disco
Sixto Rodriguez
Skream
Slamboree
Sleepingdog
Slint
Slowdive
Smog
Sol Seppy
Spiritualized
Squarepusher
Stalking Horse
Stars of the Lid
Steppenwolf
Stereolab
Steve Gunn and Black Twig Pickers
Steve Roach
Sungrazer
Sunn 0)))
Superalgebra
Supergrass
Swans
System of a Down
Talk Talk
That Fucking Tank
The Album Leaf
The Alps
The Appleseed Cast
The Beatles
The Beta Band
The Chemical Brothers
The Cinematic Orchestra
The Coral
The Dave Brubeck Quartet
The Dead Texan
The Desert Sesssions
The Divine Comedy
The Doors
The Dust Brothers
The Eternal Dream System
The Evpatoria Report
The Field
The Flaming Lips
The Flashbulb
The Fugees
The Future Sound of London
The Haxan Cloak
The Joy Formidable
The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble
The Longcut
The Mars Volta
The Mount Fuji Doomjazz Corporation
The Octopus Project
The Orb
The Power Of Kangwon Province
The Presidents of the United States of America
The Prodigy
The Propellerheads
The Roots
The Secret Machines
The Streets
The Tumbling Sea
The Twilight Sad
The Velvet Underground
The Verve
The Who
The Winstons
This Et Al
This Will Destroy You
Thom Yorke
Thomas Newman
Thought Forms
Throwing Snow
Tim Hecker
Tindersticks
TNGHT
Tobacco
Toe
Tom Vek
Too Many Zoos
Tortoise
TrapZillas
Travis
Trentemoller
Tricot
TrioVD
TV on the Radio
Ty Segal
Tycho
Ufomammut
Underworld
Unkle
US Christmas
Valley of the Giants
Vangelis
Venetian Snares
Vessels
Victoria
Vincent Markowski
Vitalic
Wand
Weedeater
Whitey
Why
William Basinski
Willy Mason
Windy and Carl
Wisp
World's End Girlfriend
worriedaboutsatan
Yann Tiersen
yourcodenameis:milo
Yppah

Movies

10 Cloverfield Lane
28 Days Later
2001: A Space Odyssey
A Clockwork Orange
A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints
A Little Pond
A Matter of Life and Death
A Room for Romeo Brass
A Taxi Driver
Adam and Paul
Adaptation
Amelie
American Beauty
Annihilation
Anomalisa
Arrival
Babel
Back to the Future Trilogy
Barking Dogs Never Bite
Batman Begins
Battle Royale
Beasts of the Southern Wild
Being John Malcovich
Beyond the Black Rainbow
BlacKkKlansmen
Black Swan
Blade Runner
Blade Runner 2049
Blame it on Fidel
Blue Velvet
Bodysong
Born on the Fourth of July
Buffalo 66
Burning
Caramel
Cast Away
Catfish
Children of Men
City of Life and Death
Climates
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
Cloverfield
Coherence
Come and See
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind
Crash
Da 5 Bloods
Dances With Wolves
Dark City
Dawn of the Dead
Day of the Dead
Dead Man's Shoes
Dead Poet's Society
District 9
Donnie Darko
Downfall
Dunkirk
Drive
East is East
Edge of Tomorrow
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Everything Everywhere All at Once
Ex Machina
Falling Down
Fargo
Festen
Field of Dreams
Fight Club
Four Lions
Four Weddings and a Funeral
Furie
Galaxy Quest
Garden State
Get Out
Ghost World
Good Morning, Vietnam
Good Will Hunting
Goodfellas
Goodnight Mummy
Grave of the Fireflies
Grizzly Man
Groundhog Day
Heavenly Creatures
Her
Hereditary
Hidden
His House
Howl's Moving Castle
I Am Mother
I am Legend
I'm a Cyborg, but that's OK
I'm Thinking of Ending Things
In Bruges
In the Loop
Inception
Interstellar
Invaders from Mars
JFK
Joker
Joint Security Area
Jude
Koyaanisqatsi
Kung Fu Hustle
La Haine
Labyrinth
Lady Vengeance
Le Dîner de Cons
Leaving Las Vegas
Logan's Run
Looper
Lost in Translation
Love Meetings
Mandy
Manos: The Hands of Fate
Melancholia
Memento
Memories of Murder
Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence
Metropolis
Midnight Cowboy
Midsommar
Milyang (Secret Sunshine)
Minority Report
Misery
Mission: Impossible
Mon Oncle Jacques Tati
Monsters
Moon
Mother
Mother!
Mulholland Drive
My Dinner with Andre
My Neighbor Totoro
My Summer of Love
Mysterious Skin
Mystic River
Napoleon Dynamite
Network
Never Let Me Go
Night of the Living Dead
Nineteen Eighty-Four
No Country For Old Men
Oasis
Okja
Oldboy
Once Upon a Time in the Midlands
Overlord
Parasite
Peppermint Candy
Platoon
Poetry
Powaqqatsi
Precious
Predestination
Princess Mononoke
Prisoners
Pulp Fiction
Rabbit-Proof Fence
Rain Man
Relic
Requiem for a Dream
Return to Oz
Revolutionary Road
Road to Perdition
Room
Saving Private Ryan
Schindler's List
Seoul Station
Seven
Sexy Beast
Shawn of the Dead
Shooting Dogs
Shrek
Shutter Island
Silver Linings Playbook
Snowpiercer
Solaris (1972)
Son of Babylon
Source Code
Southern Comfort
Spirited Away
Star Trek: First Contact
Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
Submarine
Sunshine
Super 8
Super Size Me
Superbad
Sympathy For Mr Vengeance
Synecdoche, New York
THX 1138
Taxidermia
Tae Guk Gi: The Brotherhood of War
The Babadook
The Cabin in the Woods
The Century of the Self
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
The Dark Knight Rises
The Day a Pig Fell into a Well
The Death of Stalin
The Deer Hunter
The Endless
The Elephant Man
The Fisher King
The Fly
The Front Line
The Game
The Graduate
The Green Mile
The Handmaiden
The Hobbit
The Host
The Hours
The Hunt for Tony Blair
The Lord of the Rings Trilogy
The Man Who Fell To Earth
The Master
The Matrix
The Men Who Stare at Goats
The Motorcycle Diaries
The Pianist
The Quiet American
The Road
The Secret In Their Eyes
The Shape of Water
The Shawshank Redemption
The Shining
The Station Agent
The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada
The Tree of Life
The Truman Show
The Unbearable Lightness of Being
The Virgin Suicides
The Visitor
The Void
The Wicker Man
The Wrestler
There Will Be Blood
Thirst
This Is England
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
Timecrimes
Toy Story
Toy Story 2
Toy Story 3
Toy Story 4
Traffic
Train to Busan
Trainspotting
Transsiberian
Triangle
Triangle of Sadness
Us
Vivarium
Walk on Water
Walkabout
Welcome to Dongmakgol
Winter's Bone
XXY

Books

1984 - George Orwell
A Clockwork Orange - Anthony Burgess
Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury
Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
In the Penal Colony - Franz Kafka
Lord of the Rings - J.R.R. Tolkien
Metamorphosis - Franz Kafka
Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
On The Road - Jack Kerouac
Robinson Crusoe - Daniel Dafoe
Steppenwolf - Hermann Hesse
Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde - Robert Louis Stevenson
The Catcher in the Rye - J. D. Salinger
The Children of Men - P. D. James
The Crucible - Arthur Miller
The Curious Tale of a Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon
The Hobbit - J.R.R. Tolkien
The Judgment - Franz Kafka
The Man in the High Castle - Philip K. Dick
The Outsider - Albert Camus
The Picture of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde
The Raven - Edgar Allen Poe
The Tell-Tale Heart - Edgar Allen Poe
Trumpet - Jackie Kay
Waiting For Godot - Samuel Beckett
We - Yevgeny Zamyatin

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Travelled on and manned an 18th Century sailing ship replica in a tall ships race from Newcastle, UK to Gothenburg, Sweden.

Teach, Learn, Share

I'm good at English and Writing, have a knack for proof-reading and editing.

I teach English as a second language, so there's also that.

I can play the drums, people could learn the drums up to an intermediate level. I'd like to say professional but I know my place...

What I Can Share with Hosts

My writings and music (only if you're interested, it's not mandatory), views, tastes, knowledge of the local area once unlocked down and back out of the sticks, and prior commitments willing, my free time.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Belgium, Cambodia, China, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Italy, Laos, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Poland, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

United Kingdom, Viet Nam