Who Are Eagles Of Death Metal? U.S. Band In Paris Bataclan Attack

Eagles of Death Metal were on stage at the Bataclan concert hall in Paris, France, where the terrorist attacks took place. According to authorities, more than 100 concertgoers were killed inside the hall. Over 50 were killed at five other sites inside the city.

Fans were anxiously waiting to hear the status of the Eagles of Death Metal. According to the band’s Facebook page, front man Jesse Hughes, guitarist Dave Catching, bassist Matt McJunkins, guitarist Eden Galindo, and drummer Julio Dorio were the ones who traveled to Europe to perform that Friday. All members of the band were found safe and sound by early Saturday morning in Paris, according to a person close to the band. Even opening act Red Lemons shared a post on social media saying that the members of Eagles of Death Metal were safe.

The sold-out concert hall was part of the Eagles of Death Metal European tour. Although the members of the band were found safe, some of their crewmembers were not. One person that worked for the band was killed in the terrorist attacks, according to people close to the situation, while another was shot by one of the attackers.

A member of their social media team shared an update about the band and their crew. They said that more updates will come as more information comes in.

“We are still currently trying to determine the safety and whereabouts of all our band and crew. Our thoughts are with all of the people involved in this tragic situation.”

The Bataclan concert hall holds over 1,200 concertgoers. It’s obvious that this group is popular among their fans. But there are some wondering more about the band on Saturday evening. The band hails from Palm Desert, California, according to WGAL.com. Despite their name, the Eagles of Death Metal is actually a blues rock band. This is not their first trip to Paris, or the Bataclan concert hall. As you can see below, they last performed there in 2009.

The Eagles of Death Metal started out as a garage band in 1998 put together by Jesse Hughes and Josh Homme, who is also an occasional drummer and founder of the Queens of Stone Age, according to Mic.com. The band’s name was created as a joke that Homme’s friend started, trying to turn his friend onto heavy death metal. Homme’s friend played music from the Polish band Vader, and then Homme described the music as “The Eagles [referring to the U.S. classic rock band] of death metal.” Homme loved the name that he decided to use it for his own band.

According to the Prague Post, Homme has described his band’s music as “bluegrass slide guitar mixed with stripper drum beats and Canned Heat vocals.” The Eagles of Death Metal released their debut album in 2004, Peace, Love, Death Metal and received glowing reviews. The band has since released three studio albums, with their most recent album, Zipper Down, released in October.

The Eagles of Death Metal’s latest release is in direct correlation with the Vice’s documentary The Redemption of the Devil, according to the Music Mic.com report. The film follows Hughes’ life as he becomes ordained as a Protestant Minister and gets ready to marry adult film star Tuesday Cross. It also shows the behind-the-scenes recording process of Eagles of Death Metal’s latest album. The documentary was applauded for its wacky sense of humor and the ability to incorporate music with crazy situations.

Check out the trailer for Eagles of Death Metal’s The Redemption of the Devil in the video below.

It’s possible that you may have heard an Eagle of Death Metal’s tune in commercials for Acura, Microsoft, and Nike. The band is mostly underground, but their “catchy guitar songs” are commonly used in TV advertisements and on the Billboard Top 200 Chart.

The Eagles of Death Metal weren’t the only U.S. band involved in the Paris terrorist attacks. The Deftones were also at the Bataclan concert hall on Friday, but they left before the attacks happened.

[Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images]