As a singer-songwriter who plays solo as well as with a band, Minneapolis native Dan Mariska values collaboration and input from other musicians.

A friendly suggestion brought him to The Cabin for the first time.

His pals in the Eau Claire band, Softly, Dear, know the local scene and recommended he play on campus.

He decided to take their advice and traveled to Eau Claire on Saturday to begin the semester of weekend performances at The Cabin, arriving only with his guitar and a few friends.

Mariska played acoustic indie-rock to a variety of original songs from his two EPs and two full-length albums.  He performed his laid-back style for an audience of nearly 20 students and community members at the height of attendance.

Mariska said he appreciated the crowd as well as the atmosphere at The Cabin.

“Doing solo shows is really hard a lot of times and people just kind of come and go, but here everyone was attentive and watched everything,” he said.

Among the people in the audience toe-tapping, doing homework or casually listening with friends, Will Linstrom, a freshman music education major, said he enjoyed the performance and the hip ambience of The Cabin.

The live music in Davies Center is only a short walk from Putnam Hall for Linstrom and fellow freshmen Gweni Smith and Olivia Knutson.

Smith said she liked the convenience of The Cabin, and she thought Mariska’s chill style was a good fit.

“The atmosphere here is perfect for this kind of music,” she said.

Throughout his set, Mariska asked the audience where they were from or told them he liked pizza between songs, and then got right back into the smooth rhythm of his music.

He said he writes his songs from personal experiences, and both his older and newer material speak to this.

“It’s cool to record music as an album, as a collection of songs that you put together, because you can listen to it and it reminds you of everything you were going through at that time,” Mariska said.

Mariska’s first EP released in 2011, but he has been playing guitar since he was 9 and touring with bands and on his own since he was 17.

Now 24, he said he has had his busiest year with music, making it around more and more cities in the Midwest and even taking a trip to New York last January.

When he is not playing music, he runs sound at venues in Minneapolis and teaches lessons.

He said his goal is to stay busy with his music and to continue to play for new audiences.

“The whole philosophy behind it is just to keep making music the easiest way possible,” Mariska said.

While Mariska continues to pursue his passion across the Midwest, The Cabin will continue to bring in different performers. This semester each musician set to play at The Cabin is new to the venue.

Rebecca Lawrence, The Cabin co-chair, said the semester will include a variety of other solo artists and many bands.  She said she hopes a few local bands will draw in bigger crowds from the community.

Mariska said he will likely be back to Eau Claire as he makes his way around the music scene on his own or with band members.