It’s safe to say there’s a lot of us who have never seen Nirvana live. The last (and only) time they toured to Australia was February 1992 for Big Day Out. Two years later, Kurt Cobain was found dead in his Seattle home. Since then I’ve spent a lot of time kicking myself for missing out on the opportunity to see them play, as I’m sure many people have.
Fitting the part in a classic 90’s grunge outfit of ripped jeans and striped shirts, front man Justin Burford steps into character to become Kurt Cobain. And the similarities are freakishly parallel. Playing Cobain’s music note to note, word from word and raw authenticity to full magnitude, Nirvana’s In Utero was taken on so easily – as if they had written it themselves.
Second guitarist Rodney Aravena played the role of Nirvana’s Pat Smear smoothly as The Courtney Dunnits performed In Utero from start to finish. Hobbsy’s drumming skills were explosive all-hands-in-the-air; complete with Hugh on bass and Justin as ‘Kurt’, their stage presence for a Nirvana show was spot on.
To top it off, the band rocked on into Drain You, Even in His Youth and Lithium. Finishing up with one of Nirvana’s most animated songs, Breed channelled a deep lust feel to the set list making almost everyone in the audience wish the show had no end.
Offering such a close glimpse of what it would really be like to see Nirvana live, Burford and the band gave a memorable performance that was literally dripping with everything renowned to Cobain and Nirvana – perfect for any die-hard fan or casual Nirvana listener. Captivating, powerful and oh so consuming it was as close to the real deal as anyone could ask for.
