Jesse Hughes of the rock band Eagles of Death Metal performs with drummer Joey Castillo (R) at Festival Supreme at Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, California in this October 25, 2014 file photo. (Photo : Reuters/Alex Matthews)
The American rock band Eagles Of Death Metal spoke out for the first time since the deadly Paris attacks, revealing that gunmen had burst into their dressing room and shot at fans who were in hiding.
While members of the band remained unhurt following the attack, it was members of the band's crew and friends that eventually became victims, BBC reported .
The rock band had been playing at Bataclan the night that gunmen attacked several venues in Paris, including the grounds where the concert was being held. The California-based group was in the middle of an European tour promoting the release of their fourth album at the time.
In an interview with the Vice magazine, the lead singer of the band, Jesse Hughes told the interviewer Shane Smith that gunmen ran into their dressing room and opened fire at fans who at crept into the room for cover assuming it was safe.
"People were playing dead and they were so scared, a great reason so many were killed was because so many people wouldn't leave their friends," Hughes told Smith. "So many people put themselves in front of people."
Hughes was emotional as he sat alongside bandmate Josh Homme recalling the events of that evening. According to Hughes, everyone was killed in the dressing room massacre, except for a young child who had managed to remain unnoticed while hiding under his leather jacket.
Among the victims were the band's merchandise manager, Nick Alexander, 36, and colleagues Thomas Ayad, Marie Mosser, and Manu Perez who were attached to the band's record label.
"Although bonded in grief with the victims, the fans, the families, the citizens of Paris, and all those affected by terrorism, we are proud to stand together, with our new family, now united by a common goal of love and compassion," the band wrote in a statement made available on their Facebook page.
Meanwhile, the band has put together a documentary which is due to be screened at the International Documentary Film Festival in Amsterdam in 2016. Due to concerns that the timing was inappropriate, the screenings of the documentary have reportedly been rescheduled as it follows Hughes in the run-up to the release of the band's latest album.
Watch a clip of the interview with Eagles of Death Metal here:
