The Former Site of Lounge Will be Loudly Ressurected as Radar Bar and Nightclub

Melbourne's live music and club scene lost a big (and beloved) player, when Swanston Street's legendary Lounge shut its doors for good in April. We weren't sure what would happen to the venue — if anything at all — so it's very exciting to hear that the team behind Section 8 will take over the space and reopen it as Radar Bar & Nightclub this month.

Hospitality group Cast of Falcons (which runs The B.East, Ferdydurke and Globe Alley as well as Section 8) will be making its mark on the CBD venue. It'll take it into its next chapter with the help of a top-notch Funktion One sound system, lighting installations by creative studio John Fish and a youthful team headed up by Amber McCabe (The Town Mouse) and Kate Stuart (Rockpool Group, Lucy Liu).

To that end, we're told you can look forward to an especially broad program of tunes, covering everything from electronic and dance, to high-energy funk and hip-hop. Some well-known labels and music collectives have jumped on board, with 1800 Tequila heading up a Thursday hip-hop night and a weekly Friday party that'll dig into deep French house and techno. Elsewhere, there'll be an eclectic calendar of ticketed gigs, with plenty of international names coming to play later in the year. It all kicks off on Friday, July 12 with a party run by arts collective Medium.

Plenty of thought has also gone into the drinks offering, which is refreshingly contract-free and packed full of independent labels. The options will change up regularly, shaped by lots of staff input, so expect some robust cocktails, including a few signature tap varieties, along with local craft brews and an organic-leaning lineup of wine. All up, Radar's working a slightly more grown-up list than its siblings.

Lounge sadly called last drinks for the space in April, apparently after the landlord decided not to renew the lease. But, nonetheless, it went out with a bang, hosting a special run of 29 shows to celebrate its 29 long years of life and the lineup of musical guests its hosted along the way. Cast of Falcons has some pretty big shoes to fill, that's to be sure — but we're looking forward to seeing what it does with the venue.

Radar Bar & Nightclub is set to open at 1/243 Swanston Street, Melbourne, from Friday, July 12. We'll give you more details on the venue once it's open.