ARTICLES

direction magazine (jan 2000)

'yfriday' by derek green

Direction Magazine
YFRIDAY By Derek Green

A Christian band with a message. You will be hearing a lot more from them in the future.

"yfriday" looks as if it might be an Internet name. In fact it is the name of a Christian band that you are likely to hear a lot more about in the near future. They are already well known in the North East of England, and now, with the release of their first CD, and an invitation to play at the New Year's Eve Concert on Cross Rhythms radio, from a live concert in Northern Ireland, their name and their music are likely to be in great demand.

I asked Ken Riley, their lead singer and guitarist, how they chose the name for their band. "Six years ago, the Youth for Christ organisation started a monthly programme, called 'Why Friday?' and we were asked to form a band," he explained. "We decided to take the same name for the band, and it has just stuck! At the beginning it was a fairly small affair, with about 50-60 young people attending, but over the years it has grown, and it is now held in the Newcastle City Hall, which seats around 2,000. We usually get about 800 attending these days. We still play every month, although there have been a few changes over the years."

Ken, who writes most of the songs, leads the present band. Dez Minto plays the drums. He is the son of a minister from Gateshead, and has a Methodist background. Ben Culkin comes from a Church of England Church in Chester-le-Street, and he plays bass guitar. Gav Richards, who plays keyboards, comes from a Free Church in Hartlepool.

Ken, himself, is the worship leader at the Oasis Christian Fellowship, (an Elim Pentecostal Church) in Whitley Bay. He has always been interested in bands and music, and had played in a number of bands in the North East, before he became a Christian. Ken described himself as an average young man, "interested in alcohol and women". Then some eight years or so ago, his wife, Amanda, started going to the Oasis Christian Fellowship, and became a committed Christian. "It did not bother me too much," Ken commented. "She used to go to church every Sunday, and I felt that was fine if that is what she wanted to do, but I never really thought it was for me. Then one day I heard that there was going to be a concert at the church with John Perry. I just commented casually to Amanda that if she got a ticket, I might just go with her." Amanda did get a ticket, and Ken did go to the concert. "The concert made me aware of the reality of God," Ken told me. "I went home and prayed a simple prayer to God, as I really felt I needed to know Him more personally." Instantly some words came into his mind. They were the words of a song,

"Turn around, look straight ahead,
Walk the other way,
'cos there is a new start every day."

Ken realised that these were the words of a song he had written five years earlier, while singing with a band. These words kept ringing in his ears, and he began to realise that God was speaking to him through his own song. "They made a huge impact on me and tears began to flow down my face as I sat on my own. As I walked into the bathroom, I heard a voice saying, 'Build me a house of love.' This is cool, I thought - God speaking to me!" A little while after this, he was staying in a hotel, in connexion with his work, when once again he heard an audible voice saying, "Only one door into heaven." "It was so clear," Ken said, "I looked around to see who had said it, but there was nobody there. I realised that God really can speak loud and clear. "There was a chuckle in Ken's voice as he recalled the experience, "I remember thinking, 'O.K. that's fine, this is what it is all about!'"

After making his personal decision to become a Christian, it was not long before the leaders of the local church recognised his musical talent and started using him in leading the worship in the church. He got involved with all the church was offering - house groups, prayer meetings, and everything else. He recalled one of his most embarrasing moments, when he wanted to strike up the song, "Our God is an awesome God..." but instead he started, "Our God is an awful God...." He grew quickly in his Christian life, and it was not long after that he was asked to form the "yfriday" band.

"I remember," Ken said, "One day we were having a rehearsal, and I felt the power of God upon me in a remarkable way. I fell to the floor, and just lay there for about half an hour. I found myself crying, laughing, and having an amazing experience with God. I had not heard of other people having this sort of experience, but I guess God knew I was the sort of person that just needed to experience supernatural things. It was some time after that we heard about other people having similar experiences in Sunderland, and Toronto and other places. I remember that time. It was as if God was awakening my spirit to amazing things. It seemed that God was taking the lid off a box and showing me exciting things that were available to me."

"yfriday" has continued over the six years, with a few changes of personnel, but Ken has been there from the beginning. The band members all have good jobs, which, of course does limit, to some extent, their availability, but they are sure that God is leading them into wider opportunities. Their music is varied, from lively to tender. They encourage audience participation, and more recently have become "aggressively evangelistic". Ken explained that they are finding young people like to hear it the way it is - strong and to the point. They have seen literally hundreds of people make decisions to become Christians as a result of their concerts.

In the middle of a recent concert, Ken felt God telling him to invite someone who had a pain in their right eye to believe God for healing. The following week someone rang to tell them that they had been at the concert, and that they had sustained a sports injury to their right eye ten years earlier, and that it had been healed as a result of the concert. The same week someone else rang and said exactly the same. Two people healed as a result of their one concert!

"yfriday" has recently signed a contract with Kingsway, who will be selling their CD, "Rainmaker". Ken explained how this came about. "We had many people telling us we should make a recording, but the initial cost is around £10,000. We knew that if we did it, we would want it to be top quality. Eventually we felt it was right, and it has been amazing how the money has come in. People have stopped us and offered us gifts or loans - just at the right time."

Currently the band is touring with Noel Richards in various parts of the British Isles, and then on December 31st is "the big one" when they will play at the Cross Rhythms international concert. I asked how this came about, and Ken told me that over recent months the band and the monthly concert in Newcastle City Hall have been really concerned about the Irish situation, and have spent prolonged times of prayer, seeking God to bring about peace there. Then Cross Rhythms who are sponsoring this concert, in which people from many denominations, and from many countries will take part contacted them. It is hoped that, not only will the band play; but that many short plays, prayers, interviews and other items will be broadcast. (Details of this were given in the November Direction.) Ken added, "I feel this is going to be a significant event, not only in the life of the band, but in the whole Irish scene."

Summing up their concerts, Ken said, "We want to provide really good music which people can enjoy, and we also seek to present a meaningful challenge. We hope people will be different when they leave as a result of being in our concert. We feel it is important to take God into places where He is not usually seen. It is important for the Christian Church to be outward- looking and reach the world with its message. We must let the world know that God is the prime source, and reason for everything."

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