Eagles of Death Metal - A Shoulder Punch, a Birthday Mystery and a Whole Lot of Rock ’n’ Roll
Rockefeller, Oslo, Norway – 8th November 2026
IMAGES KENNETH SPORHEIM / WORDS THOMAS KIRKEBY
Eagles of Death Metal – A Fistful of Rock ’n’ Roll in Oslo
I
Twenty years is a long time in rock ’n’ roll. Long enough, in fact, for an album to become a classic among its devoted followers while remaining almost entirely unknown to the rest of us. I belong firmly in the latter category when it comes to Eagles of Death Metal. Despite having heard their name countless times over the years, I could barely name a song before heading to Rockefeller on Sunday evening.
With the band celebrating the 20th anniversary of their second album, Death by Sexy, by performing it in its entirety, I decided some last-minute homework was in order. Two listens on the bus to Oslo would have to do.
Arriving at Rockefeller around 8.20 pm, I was greeted by a surprisingly long queue stretching outside into the November cold. Security was thorough, with everyone passing through a metal detector before entering. Considering the band's tragic history at the Bataclan in Paris in 2015, the precautions were understandable.
As I stood there with my hands firmly buried in my pockets, trying to keep warm, a cheerful-looking fellow made his way along the queue, greeting random people with enthusiastic fist bumps. Unable to free my hands quickly enough, I received a friendly punch on the shoulder instead. I had no idea who the fellow was, but you never know who you might bump into – or who might bump into you – on a Sunday night in Oslo.
Despite the queue outside, there was still plenty of room inside Rockefeller five minutes before the scheduled 9 pm start. I wondered whether the band would hold off until everyone had made it through security.
At approximately 9.15 pm, the familiar strains of "Time Warp" from The Rocky Horror Picture Show filled the venue, and out came a man wearing a short, glittering cape, a black T-shirt, white trousers and matching braces, dancing his way onto the stage.
Hang on a minute. That's the fellow who punched me on the shoulder outside!
It turned out my mysterious acquaintance was none other than Jesse Hughes himself, the band's frontman. My first physical encounter with Eagles of Death Metal, and I hadn't even realised it. Something to tell the grandchildren one day.
The cape was soon discarded, a guitar was strapped on, and Hughes adjusted his microphone. Then came a laugh, just as on the opening track of Death by Sexy.
And with that, the anniversary celebration was underway.
"I Want You So Hard (Boy's Bad News)" immediately had the audience singing along, and it also confirmed something I had been wondering about during my brief introduction to the album. On Death by Sexy, Eagles of Death Metal can sound rather tinny and rattly, with a somewhat rigid, stop-start quality to their garage rock. Live, however, the music had considerably more muscle. The riffs sounded fuller, the rhythms flowed more naturally, and the songs were every bit as catchy as their recorded counterparts, if not more so.
"I Got a Feelin (Just Nineteen)" followed, giving me an opportunity to notice drummer Leah Bluestein's remarkably economical drum kit. There was nothing unnecessary on that stage. No elaborate collection of toms or cymbals, just the essentials needed to keep the music moving. And moving it certainly was.
The songs came thick and fast. "Cherry Cola" arrived with barely a pause, the only interruption being the occasional guitar change. Hughes would casually toss his instrument towards his guitar technician, Big Eric, who appeared well accustomed to catching flying guitars.
It was all wonderfully informal.
By the time "I Like to Move in the Night" came around, Hughes finally took a moment to address the audience.
"It's cold outside, ladies and gentlemen, but it's hot in here!"
He also revealed that he had been outside greeting people in the queue, confirming the identity of my mysterious shoulder-punching acquaintance.
Hughes then began calling out for Chris Summers, the Turbonegro drummer, who was apparently somewhere in the audience celebrating his birthday. After several unsuccessful attempts to get his attention, someone else shouted back. Whether this was another Chris or simply someone having a laugh was anyone's guess. Hughes concluded that there must be more than one Chris in the audience that evening. The birthday boy himself, however, remained elusive.
It was the first of several references to the Norwegian band, and clearly a friendship Hughes was delighted to celebrate.
"Can you dig it?" he repeatedly asked us throughout the evening.
Well, yes. As it happened, I could.
There is something genuinely infectious about a performer who appears to be enjoying himself this much. Hughes grinned, danced, shook his backside and generally behaved like a man who had been given the keys to his favourite playground. During "Solid Gold", his enthusiasm was almost impossible to ignore.
And importantly, it wasn't a one-man show. Guitarist Scott Shiflett, bassist Dustin Douglas and Bluestein all contributed to a tight, energetic performance that never felt mechanical. The chemistry between the musicians was obvious, and the audience responded accordingly.
"Don't Speak (I Came to Make a Bang!)" got off to a particularly enthusiastic start, with the crowd clapping along. This was precisely the sort of concert atmosphere I enjoy: musicians having a great time on stage and an audience more than willing to join them.
During "Keep Your Head Up", Hughes decided that the stage was apparently too far away from his fans. He jumped down to the floor in front of the barriers and began checking on the people closest to him.
"It's a cruel world, but what can we do but rock and roll?"
It was hardly a profound philosophical statement, but delivered with Hughes' enormous grin, it seemed like a perfectly reasonable answer to life's problems.
He remained down by the barriers for much of "The Ballad of Queen Bee and Baby Duck", prompting someone further back to shout that he should get back on stage because they couldn't see him. Hughes eventually obliged towards the end of the song, although whether he actually heard the complaint is another matter.
By "Poor Doggie", even I was able to sing along. Not bad for someone whose entire relationship with the album had begun on a bus just a couple of hours earlier.
The Norwegian connection returned when Hughes told us about the first time he saw Turbonegro perform in California. Hearing "I Got Erection" apparently made quite an impression on him, and he enthusiastically explained the appeal of swinging around a particularly large erection.
He then admitted that he hoped his mother would never hear him say such a thing.
"But it's science," he insisted.
Naturally.
The story provided a suitably ridiculous introduction to "Chase the Devil", and by this point it was becoming increasingly clear that Eagles of Death Metal were as much about personality and entertainment as they were about the songs themselves.
And that is not intended as criticism.
There are bands whose performances depend on musical precision, elaborate arrangements or technical virtuosity. Eagles of Death Metal seem just as interested in making sure everyone leaves with a smile on their face. Their brand of garage rock is uncomplicated, playful and deliberately rough around the edges, but the live setting gives it an energy that I found less apparent on Death by Sexy itself.
For a band whose name might suggest something considerably heavier, the music is surprisingly accessible. There is plenty of boogie, a healthy dose of glam-rock attitude and enough irresistible guitar hooks to keep the audience moving. It is rock ’n’ roll with its tongue firmly in its cheek.
The anniversary performance continued through the remaining tracks of Death by Sexy, with the evening's setlist subsequently extending beyond the album to include earlier material, a Boots Electric number and a cover of David Bowie's "Heroes".
My own evening ended before those additional songs, but the hour I spent in the company of Jesse Hughes and his band was more than enough to understand their appeal.
I had arrived knowing almost nothing about Eagles of Death Metal. I left with a much greater appreciation of their music, particularly its ability to come alive on stage, and with the distinct impression that Hughes would be an entertaining person to spend an evening with even without a guitar in his hands.
The feeling seemed entirely mutual.
And somewhere in Oslo, Chris Summers was hopefully having a very happy birthday.
SETLIST
1/ I Want You So Hard (Boy's Bad News)
2/ "I Got a Feelin (Just Nineteen)
3/ Cherry Cola
4/ I Like to Move in the Night
5/ Solid Gold
6/ Don't Speak (I Came to Make a Bang!)
7/ Keep Your Head Up
8/ The Ballad of Queen Bee and Baby Duck
9/ Poor Doggie
10/ Chase the Devil
11/ Eagles Goth
12/ Shasta Beast
13/ Bag O' Miracles
14/ I Only Want You
15/ Miss Alissa / Secret Plans
16/ Complexity (Boots Electric cover)
17/ I Love You All the Time
18/ Heroes (David Bowie cover)
19/ Speaking in Tongues
FOLLOW EAGLES OF DEATH METAL
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