Eric’s Favorites
Next travel destination: Chicago
James Taylor song: “Country Roads”
Campus hangout: Hallway in Founders Hall
Place to shop in Arcata: Bang! Bang! Vintage/Consignment
Food: Sunny-side up eggs
Bass lessons began at age 12, guitar at 15, and piano at 18.
Now 22 years old, HSU student Eric Bablinskas still utilizes his years of instrumental experience — along with his innate songwriting ability — for his music project, Straight Lines for States. As a senior geography major, he has definitely found a way to incorporate his major area of study into his decade long hobby.
“I’m kind of obsessed with the whole concept of ‘place,’ I don’t know why,” Bablinskas said. “It’s always been something that really fascinates me… just the idea of ‘place:’ people and their regional differences, and how people connect to where they’re from. I just think it’s really cool, so I decided to study it.”
His newest full-length album, “The 41st Parallel,” is named after the latitudinal location of Arcata and is set to be released soon. Bablinskas does not have big-time goals for his music project, but the creative outlet has undoubtedly helped him grow as a person during his four years at Humboldt State.
“It is a great medium when I’m like, really pissed off about something, to just sing about it,” Bablinskas said about songwriting. “I think it’s better than punching a wall or taking it out on somebody else.”
Bablinskas describes his music as “something between James Taylor and Sufjan Stevens, except angrier” and admits his older music has a more morbid vibe than his newer songs.
“A lot of it is kind of angrier, more depressing and sad,” he said. “My newer stuff might have elements of that but it’s generally coming from a more positive place.”
One of Bablinskas’s older songs titled “Summer Camp 2009!” tells his story of working as a camp counselor on the central coast and is a perfect example of his angrier lyrics.
“That song in particular is probably my most bitter ‘cause it was just such a horrible experience. I thought it’d be great, but the counselors were just horrible people. My kids pushed me around — literally, PUSHED,” he said with a laugh. “I really just did not click with anybody, and I didn’t enjoy it so I wrote this right when I got back.”
In spite of the morose tone, the song acted as a stepping stone to his success as a local musician.
During his second ever open mic performance a few years ago, he received a standing ovation from the crowd after performing “Summer Camp 2009!” Bablinskas has since then played a few other open mic shows and was featured on KRFH’s Local Lixx broadcast during its first installment of “Lixx Unplugged: Singer/Songwriter Night.” Bablinskas performed a song titled “The Ballad of S and J” that was inspired after watching “Brokeback Mountain.”
Brandon Widder, former Local Lixx manager, said the performance made the whole room cry.
“It was really depressing, but he was great,” Widder said. “He’s got a strange voice but it really works well for the type of music he does.”
Bablinskas is more enthusiastic about the intricate process of writing, recording and editing his songs than he is about performing. Despite his aversion to performance, he will Bablinskas admits he’ll play for his biggest supporters: his friends.
While Bablinskas gears up for graduation in May, he will still be recording songs on the four-track equipment in his bedroom and writing music from the pianos in the music building on campus. After graduation, he sees himself possibly moving back to the Bay Area and living in the city for a while, or trying to get an internship in Seattle. Bablinskas would like to use his degree to go into urban planning but is keeping his options open.
“I’m 22, and life always changes, so I’m just keeping an open mind right now.”
Photo credit: Kiley Melicker