American band Eagles of Death Metal caught up in chaos of Paris attacks

LOS ANGELES -- As darkness fell Saturday, Irish rockers U2 made a rare public appearance, joining thousands of mourners at the Bataclan concert hall -- where the night before terrorists turned a packed house into a house of horrors.

Just hours earlier, the Southern California band Eagles of Death Metal was rocking out with their fans, one who captured the show on cell phone video moments before tragedy struck.

Though they may not be a household name, when the Eagles of Death Metal play venues like the Viper Room in L.A., they're packed. Fans eat their music up.

Their last three albums have all made it to the Billboard Top 200. Their music is so catchy it's often used in commercials, including Nike ads.

As news of the attacks spread, their fans in the U.S. jumped on social media, hungry for any news about the band's fate.

Late Friday night, CBS News confirmed that the band members all made it out alive. But Nick Alexander, merchandise manager and British national, did not.

"My reaction was shock and disbelief -- that of all the bands in the world, that it would be these guys," music journalist Steve Appleford told CBS News.

Appleford interviewed the band's founders, Joshua Homme and Jesse Hughes, right before their European tour began.

"It's really a band that is rooted in classic '70s riff-based rock and rock, and they like to dance and they like to have fun," Appleford said. "Jesse sings about girls and having a good time. ... Even though the word death is in their name, nothing can be further than what that band is all about."

A band built on sharing their love of music has canceled the rest of their European tour. And now, through no fault of their own, the Eagles of Death Metal will be forever linked to tragedy.