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The Black Mages
| Overview | History | Members | Discography | Concerts |
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Date of Formation: | April 26, 2003 (Live Concert) |
| Company: | Square Enix | |
| Genre: | Hard Rock, Rock Opera | |
| Source Material: | Final Fantasy Battle Themes | |
| Members: | Tsuyoshi Sekito, Michio Okamiya, Kenichiro Fukui Nobuo Uematsu, Keiji Kawamori, Arata Hanyuda |
The Black Mages are a rock band formed in Spring 2003 dedicated to arranging and performing Final Fantasy action themes. They have six regular members — guitarists Tsuyoshi Sekito and Michio Okamiya, keyboardist Kenichiro Fukui, organist Nobuo Uematsu, bass guitarist Keiji Kawamori, and drummer Arata Hanyuda. Guest vocalists Tomoaki Watanabe and Kazco Hamano have also worked with them.
They have released two studio albums to date — The Black Mages, actually created entirely by band founders Sekito and Fukui, and The Black Mages II ~The Skies Above~. They have performed the material of these albums at several concerts in Japan released in DVD format. A double disc third album will be released in March 2008 featuring a rock-operatic bonus disc.
In addition, The Black Mages have made appearances on the Dark Chronicle Premium Arrange, Final Fantasy III Original Soundtrack, More Friends - Music from Final Fantasy, VOICES - Music from Final Fantasy, and Extra: Hyper Game Music Event 2007. The band are phenomenally popular in Japan and well-known among gamers of the West.
