On Tuesday, Dec. 8, a little less than a month after terrorist attacks in Paris killed 130 people, Eagles of Death Metal made an emotional return to the Bataclan, where they’d been performing when gunmen stormed the venue on Nov. 13.
Band members, including frontman Jesse Hughes, paid tribute to the victims at a makeshift memorial outside the concert hall. Some cried as they read tributes and gazed upon the sea of flowers and French flags.
One night earlier, on Dec. 7, the American rock band took to the stage for the first time since the attacks, joining U2 at their concert at Paris’ AccorHotels Arena. Together, the groups led the audience in a version of “People Have the Power” before Eagles of Death Metal performed solo, singing “I Love You All the Time.”
In a Facebook post after the show, EODM thanked U2 for the opportunity to perform in Paris again and promised fans they’d be back with more shows next year.
“We want to offer our heartfelt thanks and appreciation for everything our brothers in U2 did for us in the aftermath of the November 13 attacks,” they wrote. “They reminded us that the bad guys never take a day off, and therefore we rock ‘n’ rollers cannot either . . . and we never will.”
They went on to praise the “healing power of rock ‘n’ roll” and the “beautiful people” of Paris. “Thank you to France, and thank you to everyone in the world who continues to prove that love, joy, and music will always overcome terror and evil,” the post read. “We look forward to fighting the good fight on many more fronts very soon, especially when we pick up our tour in 2016. See you again in February, Paris.”
