EAGLES OF DEATH METAL RETURN TO PARIS

Rockers Eagles of Death Metal returned to Paris on Tuesday for a show at the Olympia, just three months following the devastating attack during their show at the Bataclan that left 89 dead.

Admission for the approximately 900 survivors in attendance was free.

The energy and emotion in the room was said to be palpable, as those affected bravely tried to replace undoubtedly traumatizing memories with feelings of celebration, a refusal to "let the bad guys win"—as frontman Jesse Hughes told French channel iTélé—and, of course, good, ol' fashion rock 'n roll. The reunion took place at a different venue, as the Bataclan remains closed 'til the end of the year, and a psychological support team was set up on-site.


We commend the band for their continued courage and optimism in the face of maliciousness. EODM initially revisited the city as guests at U2's show at the AccorHotels Arena in December. After which, they released the following message:

“We want to offer our heartfelt thanks and appreciation for everything our brothers in U2 did for us in the aftermath of the Nov. 13 attacks," shared Hughes. "They reminded us that the bad guys never take a day off, and therefore we rock ’n rollers cannot either…and we never will. We are incredibly grateful to U2 for providing us the opportunity to return to Paris so quickly, and to share in the healing power of rock ‘n roll with so many of the beautiful people—nos amis—of this great city. Thank you to Bono, The Edge, Larry and Adam, thank you to their wonderful management, 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. 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.”

Following the arena appearance, the band launched the Play It Forward campaign, with which they asked artists around the world over to cover their “I Love You All The Time" (off 2015's Zipper Down). For every cover sold, the band pledged to donate 100% of its publishing income to The Sweet Stuff Foundation, the non-profit organization founded in 2013 by EODM co-founder Joshua Homme to provide assistance to musicians and their families in times of need, as well as musical education and gear for the next generation.

Before playing the aforementioned song this week at the Olympia, Hughes cheered, "I want to propose a toast. I see a room full of champions, nos amis. I fucking love you all the time."

The rest of the career-spanning set covered songs from each of their four albums, including a version of "Wannabe in L.A."—off 2008's Heart On—which was reworked as "Wannabe in Paris."

They also made sure to perform their renowned cover of Duran Duran's "Save a Prayer," which was dubbbed Song of the Year by the Evening Standard, and was the center of a fan-led campaign to push the track to #1 in the U.K. At that time in December, Simon LeBon tweeted that the new romantic icons would donate their share of royalties from the track to charity.

Watch EODM's 2/16 performance of Death By Sexy's "Don't Speak" and get a look at the crowd's utter elation during a performance of the aptly titled Peace, Love and Death Metal's "Speaking in Tongues" below.