Announcement from management - July 21 2002 
RING OF FIRE - Burning Live In Tokyo 2002

Thanks to all the Ring Of Fire fans out there for supporting the band and this site. Today I'd like to talk about the long-awaited live releases on behalf of the band and those responsible for the making of these releases. We'll also answer some questions from fans which have come to us through ROF's webmasters.

The live album "RING OF FIRE - Burning Live In Tokyo 2002" represents the concerts in Japan on the very first tour of this supergroup, capturing the dynamic performances of the band members, and the enthusiasm of the crowds attending the shows. Also, this is a commemoration of the shows that led to Tony MacAlpine joining Ring Of Fire as an official member.

To give some background on the making of the DVD, filmed during the same tour, the show was shot in great clarity by eleven high vision cameras and digital betacams. As for editing, first class video artists created an energetic visual, which is perfectly suited and synchronized to the accompanying music. Fans will enjoy its multi angle feature (on Bringer Of Pain), bonus band member interviews and so on. On the CD, bonuses include Mark's message to the ROF fans, an unreleased track (Leviathan), and the inclusion of the duet of Bach's Prelude #2 by Tony and Vitalij, as well as extended solos from each member. The CD also has extra photos from the tour to give you an idea of what the live shows looked like.

This album and DVD (Both entitled "Burning Live in Tokyo 2002") will be released on August 21 by Marquee Inc. The first pressing is limited in number, so we encourage you to preorder to make sure you can get your copy on the release day. We are now considering several ideas to present these products as soon as possible to fans in countries outside Japan/Asia. We'll tell you immediately when there are any developments. You can look forward to future announcements of more detailed info, photos, reviews in magazine and so on which will come one after another.

Now, there are some questions from fans about the tracklisting on the live releases, regarding the medley of Yngwie Malmsteen's "You Don't Remember, I'll Never Forget/Magic Mirror", and whether or not it will be on the releases. The answer is that originally, the version prepared for production included it. This DVD was the very first DVD for the label, therefore, much time was spent on the project to make sure it was done by the book. We had completed the editing in full by the middle of May 2002 before the building that included Mugenkyo's office exploded. Yngwie's music was played live to respond the fans requests to hear a part of Mark Boals' musical history given the Ring Of Fire treatment. We followed the formal procedures before the Japan tour and gained the permission for the use of Yngwie's music from those responsible for the rights to the music, so there wouldn't be any problem for both playing live and recording.

However, after we finished editing the DVD, Yngwie's representatives informed the label that we would not be able to use the music for the standard amount of payment that was previously agreed to. Compared with CD, DVD creation involves extremely accurate synchronizing of audio and visual with the time code in editing. This makes it impossible to simply cut one song from the master. A decision needed to be made about whether or not the financial demands should be met, or if the DVD should be re-edited, omitting the song in question, incurring more investments of both time and money. After consulting the label and the DVD production staffs, it proved more financially viable to re-edit the DVD, omitting the music in question, than to pay the amount of money they asked for.

After all, when considering the final results of the live DVD and album, the difference is minimal. Within their chosen style, Ring Of Fire are already creating their own sound and musical characteristics. So, the members of Ring Of Fire remain unaffected by the circumstances. The label and production staffs are confident that the final product is something to be proud of. We're confident that after you see it, you won't give any of this a second thought. Check out both the album and DVD, and see the Ring Of Fire live experience for yourselves!

Mark's soaring vocals, Tony's fiery guitar, Vitalij's shredding keyboards, Philip's earth shaking bass and Virgil's explosive drum beats will surely blow you away!

Mugenkyo