NEW BRUNSWICK -- The Court Tavern, the longstanding bar, basement venue and raucous epicenter of the New Brunswick's local music scene, has again gone quiet.

The club shut its doors Friday and will stay dark for at least the summer, said manager Rocky Catanese, who cited a downturn in sales over the last year as the cause for closure. All eight concerts scheduled through July and August are canceled.

Owner Michael Barrood told the Asbury Park Press he aims to sell or rent the Church Street spot, which through multiple ownership changes has delivered both New Jersey-based and internationally touring acts to sweat-soaked crowds since 1981.

Barrood, who also owns Mike's Courtside Sports Bar and Grill in the city, told the Press that the Court will reopen at some point, whether its under his or someone else's management. Barrood hopes to renovate and build a better kitchen to offer more food options, the Press said.

Since the venue closed Friday, an outpouring of support has reached social media, with fans remembering when Nirvana, Pavement or The Butthole Surfers rocked the place 20 years ago.

Catanese said he appreciates the flood of kind words for the venue, but the sentiments are bittersweet.

"There is a legacy here, and it's great to hear all these memories, but at the same time, where were those people Saturday night when we had a killer show here?" he said.

The Court Tavern experienced similar turmoil in 2012, when owner Bob Albert Jr. closed the place and filed for bankruptcy. Barrood bought the bar via Sheriff's sale that same year, and since then, the venue has acted as the last bastion of the city's once-vibrant nightclub scene of the '80s and '90s. Favored locales The Melody Bar, Roxy Grill, The Plum Street Pub and Patrix -- who all regularly welcomed alternative music -- each closed years ago.

But the Court continued to draw local rock, punk and metal acts most days of the week, with the occasional big name swinging through. In September, a line stretched around the block when Hub City heroes The Bouncing Souls returned to rock their stomping grounds for the first time in eight years.

Catanese, who has managed the club since 2012, revels in the Court's deep-rooted link to frequenting musicians.

"The scene fed it and it fed the scene back," he said, noting that he's hired several members of local bands who regularly played the joint. "These bands became my compatriots, my friends."

Joe Zorzi, singer for New Brunswick-based alt-rockers Modern Chemistry, played the Court nearly two-dozen times before landing their first spot on a national tour.

"It was really the launching pad for us," Zorzi said. "It's the heartbeat of the scene here, and there's such a sense of community there."

Fellow New Brunswick bands The Gaslight Anthem, Midtown and Screaming Females got their start at the Court before touring the world.

New Brunswick still features dozens of quality bands and rivals the revamped Shore scene in Asbury Park, but many shows are housed in residential basements, a local --- and technically illegal -- tradition.

But just as Hoboken welcomed the return of Maxwell's and its renewed commitment to original live music in December, New Brunswick needs Court Tavern to maintain its place in Jersey's rock hierarchy.

"We hope it reopens, and we have our place in New Brunswick to come back to," Catanese said.

Bobby Olivier may be reached at bolivier@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @BobbyOlivier. Find NJ.com on Facebook.