Chronic Town Hookah Lounge's Dec. 27 fire has not only temporarily shut down a popular local business. It's stifled State College's independent music scene.

Chronic Town, 224 W. College Ave., is one of the area's only venues to host traveling independent artists. Past concerts have featured Matt Pond PA, The Spinto Band, The War On Drugs and Oppenheimer.

Three shows booked by Roustabout! scheduled for upcoming weeks are being moved to other local venues. The first, set for Jan. 22, is a performance by Magic Christian, which features former members of Blondie, Flamin' Groovies and the Plimsouls. The show will be relocated to Bar Bleu, 114 S. Garner St.

While two other shows are still set to take place, Roustabout! promoter Jesse Ruegg said the fire damage may decrease the number of Roustabout!-affiliated shows this semester.

"At this point, we're certainly not going to go out of our way to find bigger shows to book that are not going to be at Bar Bleu," Ruegg said of the weekly Roustabout! shows on Wednesdays. "But if something happens to come up and a band is routing through the area, we will probably consider venues like the State Theatre. Aside from that, it's tough because we don't really have a good mid-size venue available."

Emma Cusumano, a student at State College Area High School and a Chronic Town employee, highlighted the venue's importance to the under-21 crowd.

"I think that still having Bar Bleu intact, as far as booking goes, is good because maybe more people will start coming out on Wednesdays," she said. "But as far as all-ages shows that are cheap with high-caliber artists, Chronic Town is the best place around here. It's a completely different vibe."

Spinto Band frontman Nick Krill estimated he has performed at the lounge since before it was even named Chronic Town, which happened in 2007.

"I would say it's certainly different than your average bar or dark, gloomy rock club," Krill said. "It's a nicer crowd and a more relaxed atmosphere, and the all-ages factor is nice, too."

As for when Chronic Town can re-open for business and music, Ruegg said he and owner Jeff Van Fossan are not as optimistic as they were immediately after the fire.

"There's so much red tape and hoops to jump through in regards to the insurance," Ruegg said.

The Chronic Town staff hopes the lounge will re-open by spring break, Ruegg added.