Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain would have turned 52 years old today, and while the band split up after Cobain鈥檚 death, their memory is still alive worldwide.

Before the band hit the big time, pre-Nevermind, they played a show right here in Victoria at what was once the Forge, now called Distrikt. Andrew Murray, an assistant teaching professor for the department of English at the University of Victroia, was at the show on March 8, 1991 and recalls it well.

鈥淚 remember they played quite a lot of songs off their first album Bleach. I remember they played a Velvet Underground cover called Here She Comes Now, which I had never heard them play before,鈥� said Murray.

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Murray had already seen the band play once before in Vancouver, but says the low ceilings and grunge feel to the Forge made it a pretty unforgettable show. Murray was born the same year as Cobain and said he felt a special connection to the lead singer.

鈥淚n a weird way I felt not like a peer of his, but at least a contemporary for sure.鈥�

He recalls how Kirst Novoselic, who played bass in the band, almost couldn鈥檛 stand up straight because of the Forge鈥檚 鈥渂asement-like鈥� interior.

鈥淗e couldn鈥檛 really bounce like he wanted to because he would hit his head on the ceiling if he did, whereas Kurt Cobain was a very small man so he was quite comfortable,鈥� said Murray.

According to Murray, the band played for about an hour, calling it a 鈥減roper show鈥� even if it was just before the band鈥檚 big break that would come later with the release of their second studio album, Nevermind.

鈥淚t was a really really good show 鈥� but you could tell they had the power and the charisma of a great rock and roll band,鈥� said Murray.

Murray still has his ticket stub from the concert in Victoria, although he describes it as a simple 50/50 raffle ticket with no band names on it.

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鈥淭hey were a ferocious band, they really were,鈥� said Murray. 鈥淲hat was different was at the later venues the mosh pit and dancing was bigger, but the band always played with real energy.鈥�

With the release of Nevermind in September 1991, the band鈥檚 fan base grew exponentially almost overnight, but according to Murray they always played a good show 鈥� having seen them play a total of four times in his life.

鈥淰ictoria was the smallest one so it was cool to be a part of that and feel like you were on the ground floor of something 鈥� but it wasn鈥檛 like they were so small that nobody had heard of them. You went to the show knowing their songs 鈥� we loved it.鈥� he said.

Murray still holds on to a lot of the memorabilia that he got during the climax of Nirvana鈥檚 fame.

鈥淚t wasn鈥檛 a time when you took photos or recorded parts of the show, you were just there and lived it and then it was over,鈥� said Murray. 鈥淚t was ferocious and energetic 鈥� a young band really hitting their stride. You could see Kurt Cobain had a charisma, that he was a rock star that hadn鈥檛 become a rock star yet.鈥�

In celebration of Cobain鈥檚 52 birthday, Lucky Bar will be holding a special event featuring Nirvana鈥檚 music and other 鈥�90s inspired grunge music along with a video tribute that will take place from 11:30 p.m. to midnight.

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