Like so many, I was extremely moved by the emotional interview with the Eagles of Death Metal that surfaced yesterday. So here’s the short comment I wrote for TMRW over here.

While we’re all still shocked about what happened in Paris two weeks ago and with some emotional wounds only healing slowly, we don’t fail to be amazed by stories of human kindness and positivity in times of pain and tragedy once more. Think of the generous people opening their doors to strangers in need, cities showing solidarity by cladding their famous monuments with the French tricolore or the blindfolded Parisian Muslim man asking for people’s trust with a heartfelt embrace.

Yeah, in times like these, it’s no wonder that we’re desperately looking for the good in others and assuring ourselves why it’s worth it to fight for a free society. Another one of these paradigms to not shy away from the terror and stand our ground is the heartbreaking VICE interview with the Eagles of Death Metal, the band that played the Bataclan club until jihadist gunmen stormed the venue and killed a total of 89 people.

But it’s not the harrowing, unsettling details the band mates describe with brittle voices, the fortunate circumstances for the people who survived and the painful memories of those who did not make it out alive. Most of all, it’s the gestures of humanity, compassion and resilience to stand up for our morals and cultural values that make the 26-minute narrative so powerful and memorable. We see what’s hiding underneath the cool facade of someone who usually bristles up with confidence and swagger, the personification of rock ‘n’ roll and badassery like EODM founders Joshua Homme and Jesse Hughes. Men now so vulnerable and visibly shattered by the tragedy. But also men who know what matters. The show must go on, at all costs.

‘I want to be the first band to play in the Bataclan when it opens back up … because I was there when it went silent for a minute. Our friends went there to see rock and roll and died. I’m going to go back there and live.’ Jesse Hughes