Fair’s finale features curious country lineup

It’s time to shake off that batch of cheese curds and carton of Aqua Net inhaled at last night’s Night Ranger show, because this weekend’s music lineup is a curious one.

With three days left in this year’s Spokane Interstate Fair, you still have a chance to check out an aspiring teenage pop star, a country vixen from the “Gimme the Mike” competition, and the best dang country cover band you’ve never heard of.

The weekend music slate begins today at 12:30 p.m. when Brian Hanson, an Oregon-based country singer, plays the first of three performances on the North Stage.

Saturday performances by Jared Wagner, Shylah Hanson and The Bliss Band highlight the weekend.

A Newport, Wash., native, Wagner stands 5 feet tall and weighs a scrawny 91 pounds, but the ultra-confident 14-year-old packs a 3 1/2 octave vocal range and has been putting out records since he was 9. Wagner plays on the Community Stage at 4:15 p.m. Saturday and at 1:45 p.m. Sunday.

Shylah Hanson might be a household name, but perhaps only to those who caught the sultry country singer in week two of the recent “Gimme the Mike” competition. Hanson performs on the Familyville Stage with vocalist Michael Epps at 6 p.m. on Saturday.

Longtime country four-piece The Bliss Band has one of tightest sets of gritty, old school country standards this side of the Dakotas. If your heart gets achy-breaky when you think of Merle, Waylon and Hank, then these locals are likely your ticket. The Bliss Band plays on the Community Stage at 8:30 p.m. Saturday.

As for the rest of the weekend …

Today

North Stage: Brian Hanson (12:30, 2:30 and 4:30 p.m.)

Communty Stage: The Seth Everts Band (3 p.m.), Merridee Joy (4:30 p.m.), and The No Cover Band (8:15 p.m.)

Familyville Stage: Ben “Preslee” Klein & the Rockabillies (6 p.m.)

Saturday

Community Stage: Gail Martin (10:15 a.m.), Merridee Joy (11:15 a.m.), keyboardist Bill Rasmussen (12:15 p.m.), Merridee Joy (1:15 p.m.), Haran Dancers (2:15 p.m.), Don Butcher (3:15 p.m.), Jared Wagner (4:15 p.m.), Kathy Colton & the Reluctants (7:15 p.m.), and The Bliss Band (8:30 p.m.)

Familyville Stage: Michael Epps and Shylah Hanson (6 p.m.)

Sunday

Community Stage: The Entertainers (11 a.m.), Troy “T-Bone” Lucas (noon), Jared Wagner (1:45 p.m.), and George & the Burning Gods of Love (5:45 p.m.)