Pandemic put some venues past last call

Boston’s music scene has lost at least eight beloved live music venues in the year since the coronavirus pandemic forced their closure.

Great Scott in Allston was one of the first venues to meet its end amid the pandemic, announcing it’s permanent closure in June after 44 years in business. There’s hope for a future for the storied rock club, however, as the club’s former talent buyer looks to resurrect it at the Allston Depot, in the space once occupied by Pizzeria Regina.

Down the street, another popular music hotspot — Wonder Bar — also won’t reopen, the owners announced in November.

Later in June, the owners of the Milky Way Lounge announced the club also wouldn’t reopen, after nearly three decades in busienss.

Machine Nightclub in Boston, an important incubator for Boston’s LGBTQ community closed down last year as well.

The Cantab Lounge in Cambridge is for sale and has been since July. It’s unclear if a buyer would bring the club back once live music is eventually allowed to resume.

By August, the Thunder Road owner gave up on his six-year-old restaurant and live music club in Union Square in Somerville, saying the losses were just too deep after six months without revenue.

Across the street, Bull McCabe’s in Union Square in Somerville also met its demise. The tiny bar was local favorite and hosted residencies for bands like Dub Down and Krush Faktory for 12 years.

Adding the tally of closed nightclubs in Somerville is Once Ball Room outside of Davis Square. Owners for the 411person capacity ballroom in November said it, too, would not reopen.

Questions about the longevity of other beloved Boston venues — particularly those that are independently owned — grow more pressing the longer restrictions on live music endure.

On March 1, Gov. Charlie Baker lifted restrictions on indoor music in bars, but the singing is still disallowed for now, making it impossible for the most bands to play.