A series of free concerts at North Dam Park and Events Center will kick off with a local group offering the first backbeat on Friday, then a Spokane trio coming Saturday night.

Mister Meaner will offer a couple of hours of “classic rock,” they say, “stuff people actually want to hear.”

That’s how rhythm guitar player and vocalist Tony Louie describes the band’s choices in music.

“We’re trying to appeal to the older crowd of Grand Coulee,” added Mason Marin, lead guitarist. “Older” may apply to a large part of the population, though, since Marin just graduated from Lake Roosevelt High School this year, but if you listen to KEYG radio, you know the kind of music he’s talking about, he says.

The 45s Chris Kopf, Chris Anderson, (drums) and Kevin Bleek (upright bass) get into their 50s rockabilly at a recent engagement. No strangers to the area, they’ve played at Hartline Rec and Wilson Creek’s Harvest Moon.

Austin Rosenbaum will be slapping the base. Tyrone Swan will lay down the beat on drums.

The new band had scheduled their first paid gig last month in Inchelium, just before Ferry County lost all electrical power in a big storm.

That means Friday night at North Dam is the band’s public debut.

With promises of Lynyrd Skynyrd, Hendrix and Guns and Roses, Friday night should be fun.

Saturday night brings The 45s, a fun trio with a rockabilly style. Think “The Stray Cats” and you’ll come to close to hearing these guys in your head.

With military roots, these guys come off as anything but. They feature excellent guitar, a guy with a mowhawk on standup base and an excellent drummer who can keep the beat with one hand on a snare while walking around a room. They’re fun.

The series is sponsored by the Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce, using hotel/motel taxes for the promotion of tourism.