It has been 10 months since most musicians have been able to perform in front of fans. It has also been that long since any of us could see them live, too.

“Our social scene was through playing shows. It was everything to us,” said Adrian Pottersmith, a member of the band The Velveteers.

Prior to March 2020, you could find Pottersmith in a basement or warehouse around Boulder, Colorado performing. Now, he has had to rely on his two bandmates to formulate ideas to connect with their fans.

“We did a live stream that was like eight really cool places in Colorado and we had my dad just record them all on his iPhone,” he said.

Pottersmith and his two bandmates, Jonny McMahon and Demi Demitro, have traveled hundreds of miles to identify unique areas to perform live streams online. They have visited the mountains in Colorado and the deserted plains of Kansas to shoot material they think will resonate with people who enjoy their music.

“We have seen people come out of the woodwork that we may have not been familiar with us before,” said Pottersmith.

Dan Levitt can relate.

Levitt is the conductor for Inside the Orchestra, a group that performs immersive concerts for students. Since COVID-19, the group has not been able to rehearse or perform in-person.

“I know the first time I get up in front of the orchestra to rehearse, I’m just going to have to take a breath and say, 'Welcome back,'" said Levitt. “I’m getting emotional now just thinking about it. [The pandemic] has allowed me to give more focus to parts of my musical life that I would normally be pulled in all sorts of directions. I wake up in the morning and say, 'I’m going to write music all day.'”

These musicians say the pandemic has been a challenge. They have had to pick up side jobs to supplement their income and have not had the thrill of performing in front of a live audience, but they say there are several silver linings. Creativity has blossomed as musicians have had to find ways to engage their audience remotely and have had more time to write and record music.

“Just the change of things; while it’s a little freaky at first, it’s really good because it forces you to do stuff that you wouldn’t do otherwise,” said McMahon. “I think most really good things come out of places that are really uncomfortable.”

For the first time since the coronavirus pandemic began, live music is making its way back to New Orleans' famous bars.

On Friday, the city announced it was moving to a modified Phase three, which will see restaurants, retail stores, and salons operate at a 75% capacity.

According to the city, a bar without a food permit can serve at 50% capacity indoors.

Gathering indoor and outdoor in the city, which was raised late last month, are capped at 75 and 150 guests, respectively.

Sporting events were limited at 15% capacity indoors and 25% outdoors.

The changes went into effect at 6 a.m. Friday.

CINCINNATI — While live music was shut down during the pandemic, Cincinnati band Heavy Hinges didn’t miss a beat when it came to writing songs.

Over the past year, Heavy Hinges crafted enough new material to record a live album at Urban Artifact in Northside and still perform all new songs during their WCPO Lounge Acts recording at Northside Yacht Club.

“We write songs very easily together. It’s just a very organic process,” singer MayaLou Banatwala said while holding her purple Brazilian wood electric ukulele. “We all wore masks the whole time. Now we’re all completely vaccinated.”

Guitarist and singer Dylan Speeg said he enjoyed the extra time spent on songwriting.

“It was interesting to write songs without any shows,” he said. “We really took a lot of time with our songwriting because we didn’t have to get them done for anything.”

Watch Heavy Hinges perform for WCPO Lounge Acts Sunday at 8 p.m.

Heavy Hinges consists of Banatwala and Speeg, along with Brian Williamson on drums, Kirk Hunter on guitar, and Andrew Laudeman on bass.

At its heart, Heavy Hinges is a melting pot of influences. The band began by covering its members’ favorite gospel standards like “Go Down Moses” and “Can’t No Grave Hold My Body Down” with an updated alt-rock vibe.

Since then, Heavy Hinges has found its own unique sound by exploring more genres. When pressed, names like Elvis Costello, Amy Winehouse, and 30s Italian jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt get dropped.

“I like to try to get as many influences in as I can,” Speeg told me. “Because they say as long as you’re ripping off three people at the same time, it’s original.”

Still, it’s the band's collective love for Motown-era hits and Banatwala’s self-described “obsession” with The Supremes keeps the band’s sound consistent among so many influences.

“We definitely have our feet in the history of music, in the past,” Speeg said. “We’re not trying to be super-progressive or anything. But I think what we come up with is very unique, because we all come from different backgrounds.”

Banatwala agreed.

“It’s from the heart,” she said.

You can watch Heavy Hinges’ WCPO Lounge Acts when it premieres at 8 p.m. Sunday, June 20, on Facebook and YouTube.

You can catch Heavy Hinges live this summer at Bircus Brewery in Ludlow, Ky., on Friday, June 25, and at Ghost Baby in Over-The-Rhine on Saturday, July 24.

BELLEVUE, Ky. — Bellevue bar and restaurant owners are happy for the end of Kentucky’s COVID-19 restrictions, but a city noise ordinance still silences live music at 10 p.m.

“It’s all about bringing people together,” Three Spirits Tavern owner Charlie Zimmerman said. “Music is the binding factor. The glue that holds us together. Right now, that’s what we need more than anything.”

Fairfield Avenue in Bellevue has seen a lot of changes in the past year. The city didn’t allow outdoor dining, and there was no outdoor entertainment before the coronavirus. Then COVID-19 made many indoor gatherings impossible.

“During COVID, when the mayor, due to the governor’s order, allowed for unlimited outdoor dining and music, everyone saw an explosive growth in what the possibility of what the district could be,” Zimmerman said.

Venue owners want the ability to have live music outside until 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, with a curfew of 10 p.m. the other days of the week.

“We want to have the biggest tool in our toolbox we can possibly get,” Zimmerman said. “Being a neighbor and steward of my community, I understand the importance of having controls on that.”

Not everyone agrees. Mayor Charlie Cleves lives near the bar, and his thoughts are of his neighbors' peace.

“There are all houses right next to him,” he said of Zimmerman. “People are living in all the houses there, and behind him, and on the other side of him."

Cleves thinks the neighborhood needs to find harmony.

“Mr. Zimmerman plays music so loud that my front windows vibrate on my house,” he said. “I think 10 p.m. is the good balance. It’s longer than they (our neighbors) wanted, and shorter than he wants it. Everyone has to give a little to get along.”

Zimmerman said even though it’s an hour difference, those 60 minutes could make all the difference in extending Bellevue's revitalization.

“It’s important that I respect my neighbor,” he said. “It’s also important that they respect us as well. the fact that these businesses need the recovery.”

Bellevue’s city council is expected to vote on the outdoor seating and outdoor entertainment ordinance at the next meeting on July 14.