Volcanic Theatre Pub is prepped for social distancing and a possible return to hosting live music.

No one needs GO! Magazine’s music columnist to tell you that these are dark times. With protests against police brutality and racism raging across the country, writing about music feels frivolous, if not completely wrong.

But there is music in Central Oregon to write about. And music — and all art — is a powerful tool for releasing anger, conveying truth, relieving sadness and uniting as a community. And now more than ever, we could use all of that.

So here’s some music news. Take it or leave it, and stay safe out there.

A Volcanic reopening?

Volcanic Theatre Pub will reopen from 6 to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday for small, open-house-type events featuring live music from local performers. Cosmonautical singer-songwriter David von Schlegell and Jess Ryan are slated to perform Friday; check Volcanic’s Facebook page or volcanictheatre.com for more performer updates.

Owner Derek Sitter based his decision on how comfortable employees, artists and community members felt about reopening. Capacity will be limited to 50, although Sitter said the venue could possibly host up to 70 depending on how parties are situated at tables.

“I’m going to put the feelers out this week on who would feel safe and comfortable to come in the room for a couple of hours, listen to some live house music and start getting this motor slowly going again,” Sitter said. “And if Phase 2 is approved with Deschutes County, then I would feel even more comfortable saying, ‘OK, Deschutes County has done their job, the cases aren’t crazy, would you feel comfortable?’ And that’s still a possibility, and it’s still a possibility even if we don’t do Phase 2.”

Since closing the venue in early March, Sitter and his staff worked to create a safe environment for an eventual reopening. They deep-cleaned and disinfected the venue and spaced out tables and chairs to meet the 6-foot social distancing requirements. They made other improvements, such as tweaking the sound system, repainting walls, treating the floors, hanging new lights and remodeling the bar area.

Volcanic also hosted a livestream concert May 29 in partnership with BSquared Management. Four artists were scheduled to perform from their homes with Volcanic signal boosting on Facebook, but only Los Angeles’ Water Tower ended up making the live stream.

Sitter said he’s talking to other promoters about partnering for more livestream shows. Livestreaming from inside Volcanic could also happen in the future. Another option would be to socially distance in the courtyard outside Volcanic with a stage set up for local performers, which would be contingent on extending the venue’s Oregon Liquor Control Commission permit to cover the outside area.

At the moment, Sitter has a handful of shows booked for September and October.

“There’s a lot of emotions going on; there’s a lot of isolation, there’s a lot of anger and frustration, and you let that out particularly in art,” Sitter said. “People have a response, and you want it to be a good response and a healthy response because that’s what we’ve always been about. You go in that room and it’s a packed house and they’re all staring at the stage, and there’s nothing better than that. They’re just silent, staring at the stage, and that’s the environment you want to create. And right now it just feels — even though Bend’s been pretty cool about this, it just takes one, two people and then you don’t have a safe environment anymore.”

Stay tuned to volcanictheatre.com or the venue’s Facebook page for updates.

Down to River’s Place

Elsewhere, live music is slowly working its way back into Central Oregonians’ lives. After testing the waters with Pete Kartsounes’ socially distanced performance May 24, food truck lot River’s Place has decided to keep it going. Blackstrap Bluegrass performed on the lot’s outdoor stage May 28, and blues belter Bobby Lindstrom played May 31.

Next up is ’90s rock cover group 90 Proof at 6 p.m. Thursday. Music will continue every Sunday and Thursday at 6 p.m. with the exception to this coming Sunday.

As mentioned in a previous column, seating is limited and mostly outside. The venue will have some tables set up inside with the garage door and windows open so people can listen, per River’s Place co-owner Jessica Swartz. Only one party per table will be allowed, so a family or group that comes in together can sit at the same table. Visit riversplacebend.com for more information.

Check out River’s Place’s full June schedule:

Thursday — 90 Proof

June 11 — Eric Leadbetter

June 14 — Dave and Melody Hill

June 18 — Drift

June 21 — Bill Keale

June 25 — Victory Swig

June 28 — Allan Byer & Friends

Streaming in person

Streaming looks like it’s here to stay, at least for this month. The Worthy Roots Relief Fund livestream shows will continue through June on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

But fans may have noticed a change of scenery in the last few Worthy Roots streams. Folk and country singers Dave and Melody Hill played the first livestream from Worthy Brewing’s stage May 23, followed by Larkspur Stand on May 27.

“It just worked well because Worthy happened to open the day before,” Bend concert promoter and Worthy Roots organizer Ian Egan said. “And it was Memorial Day weekend, so we knew even with what was going on that still at least some people would be there on the patio. And it would just give that old feeling of, ‘Hey, they’re clapping and people looking at us and paying attention again, yeah, it’s badass!’ So why not try streaming (from Worthy) as well? And yeah, it totally worked.”

Country singer-songwriter Olivia Harms streamed from her home May 30, but fans can expect to see more streams from the Worthy stage or Central Oregon Recording, which has hosted streams from Greg Botsford and Appaloosa, in the future. Other studios are getting in on the action as well: The Doc Ryan Trio is slated to stream their show from Grange Recorders in Sisters on Saturday.

“Our goal now for the future is to do them all from the stage,” Egan said. “But there’s still a handful of artists (who) … don’t want to leave their homes still. They’re not quite comfortable yet. There’s a couple that are still going from studios, which is totally fine. Do what you’re comfortable with, and we’re working with it.”

The streams support the Worthy Roots Relief Fund, with Worthy donating $5 from every six pack sold on concert day to the fund. That in turn gets divided up among the performing artists, who have each received about $300, Egan said. The rest of the fund has been given out to out-of-work musicians and support staff (including restaurant workers) as $100 grants.

Check out June’s Worthy Roots live stream shows below. All streams start at 6 p.m. and can be found on Worthy Brewing or Bend Roots Revival’s Facebook pages, as well as artists’ pages.

June 6 — DiRT (Doc Ryan Trio)

June 10 — The ABluestics

June 13 — Joel Chadd

June 17 — Lande

June 20 — Skillethead

June 24 — Milo Matthews

June 27 — The Mostest