Introducing our friends in the north ­ Ken, Dez, Danny and Gav ­ and how they are rocking Newcastle with the good news of Jesus. Clive Price meets Yfriday

The north-east is known as the cradle of English Christianity. It¹s
pioneering territory. And out of that region comes a group of young men
carrying the same torch as the saints of the golden age. They call
themselves Yfriday.

Their individual names are - Ken Riley, Dez Minto, Danny Smith and Gav Richards. And collectively they produce a guitar-driven wall of sound that echoes the Stereophonics in its style, but carries the boldness of Smith Wigglesworth at its heart.

At last year¹s Worship Together conference in Eastbourne, it was standing room only for the Yfriday gig. The band went down a storm in the upper room as they mixed early numbers from their debut album Rainmaker with tracks from their latest recording Open.

In fact, they whipped up so much excitement that the audience's incessant jumping about caused the floor to creak and groan. Word came from those below that they had to tone it down somewhat ­ that is, if they didn't want to end up on the ground floor.

It was but a reflection of the fervour they usually stir up in the
north-east, at a big youth event called Ninth Hour. "We draw in just short of a thousand, but we're hoping it's going to grow," said Ken Riley, who plays guitar, supplies lead vocals and writes the songs.

"We're seeing 20, 30, young people being saved every month. It's that
dynamic now, it's really having an impact." The Ninth Hour crowds pack out Newcastle City Hall, a legendary rock venue used by classic rock acts like Lindisfarne and Emerson, Lake and Palmer.

But they're not just pleasing the fans. They feel they're pleasing God with their praise music. And as a result, the Ninth Hour regulars are becoming brave and bold for Jesus ­ to the point of setting up Christian Unions in their schools.

"They're doing very proactive things to affect the people around them," said Dez Minto, who's just left his own teaching job to drum full-time with Yfriday.

"They're bringing their friends and classmates to the events and
meeting with God."

As Dez explains, the snowball effect has been impressive. "In the five to
six years that the event¹s been going, it¹s grown from 60 kids to nigh on a thousand now. The young people are saying to their mates, "Will you come?", and God¹s meeting with them, changing them."

"I'm washed whiter than the snow and I shine brighter than the sun,
for you are in me smiling through me." (At The Cross)

Ken confirms that Ninth Hour ­ with its two-and-a-half-hour mix of dance, drama, preaching and worship - has given young people the confidence to reach out to their schoolmates.

"They don't say "come to church" because young people just run a million miles when you mention that word. But they¹re prepared to listen to a story about a God who forgives them, a God who blesses them and a God who¹s sold out for them.

"At the last event 50 totally unchurched kids sat right at the front and
20-25 of them went forward at the end of the night. That's because a Youth for Christ team had been in doing a week of schools work. They¹d brought them along."

Ken claims the programme is "simple and honest". And he doesn¹t have a rose-tinted view. He realises that looking at the law of averages, some converts may not last the course."But we're sowing a seed," he added, "and you know with some good youth work something strong could be built into their lives."

"Some young people have come from as far afield as Carlisle to the west, and York and Leeds to the south. "God's there - that's the big thing," said Ken. "He turns up because he wants to. The young people don't want "namby-pamby" stuff. They don¹t want half-an-hour of icebreakers in order to get them in."

"The kids are genuinely getting sorted out for God and they want to worship him. They don't want to come and do quizzes all night and all that stuff. They want to get stuck in and get some Word and get some worship. They want to meet with God and they want to learn about him and go deeper into him."

"I'm longing for the faith that took you to the grave. I'm reaching for the power that brought you back again."
(Shelter)

According to Ken, people have testified to being healed at Ninth Hour.
Physical manifestations like shaking have also occurred at the meetings. But Ken feels it's very much down to the individuals as to how they respond to God.

"The music is very edgy, yet Ocompletely God-focused," said Dez. "So for a lot of the non-church kids it's less of a barrier. They come in and say, "Wow, this is cool, man, I've come in to this and then they're actually meeting God" - which is amazing."

And they don't always leave ministry time until the end of the evening.
"Sometimes it's been in the first session of worship," said Gav Richards, who plays keyboards and like his fellow band members, also does backing vocals.

Gav explained that some people might receive prayer just three songs into the set. "The thing is, who's to say that God has to move at the end of the meeting?" He recalled one particular event in Ireland, where the band played as part of a youth programme.

"The preacher had done the talk and people were getting prayed for and things like that," he remembered. "We couldn't start the next song because of the sound of people praying. We couldn't hear ourselves. We just had to stand back."

Dez also described another occasion when Yfriday played at Carlisle. "There was just this silence, where people had been worshipping. Sometimes you get so moved by fervent prayer, but there was just this silence, and you just couldn¹t break it."

"You met with me and clothed me with your praise
And autographed my spirit with your grace."
(Rain)

It's exciting days for the band, as they have been taking their high-octane worship across Britain and Ireland. "We're travelling constantly now," said Ken, "Nearly every weekend we're going somewhere in the country."

Invitations have come from other nations, too. Sadly, they had to decline
the opportunity to visit America recently because of work commitments. But all that could change as each band member has now stepped out and gone full time. "We waited and waited for the right timing which in itself was a step of faith, but we're pleased to say that the vision is turning into reality, we've walked through the door that said full time and allready we're being blessed with so many opportunities. I guess that people will be seeing a lot more of us, and hopefully right around the world. We've even scheduled a single and video for release on 21st May which will act as our calling card across the globe, and we hope that there'll be this trail of evangelised people giving thanks to God!"

"Your love runs as a river washing my shame away, restoring my faith again. "
(Head Over Heels)

Danny is the newest acquisition for the band. He joined in April 2000 to
play the bass. "I love just worshipping God really," he said. He might be modest about his role, but the rest of Yfriday talk in glowing terms about him.

"He's actually one of the nicest people you'll ever meet in your life," said
Ken. Then, with a touch of their trademark Geordie humour, he added, "We don¹t like him, by the way, but he actually is a really nice guy!¹

The band members worship at different churches in the Newcastle area ­ and have various denominational roots including Anglican, Methodist, Baptist and Pentecostal.

Of course, when people outside the region think of the north-east, they
think of the much-publicised "Sunderland Refreshing" when a spectacular move of God broke out at a church there. And Ken was among those whose lives were impacted.

"It definitely changed a lot of people's lives," he recalled. "I was at
Sunderland a couple of times and the anointing of God in those meetings was just incredible."People usually think in stereotypes, so their view of the north-east might be economic meltdown and spiritual heaviness. But Newcastle is a different place these days: high-tech industries have replaced the old factories, and shoppers come from other parts of Europe to visit the new stores and malls. "It's a far cry from the flat caps and whippets," said Dez.

"Having said that, it's also like the party capital of Europe, with loads of
drinking and dodgy things going on,"said Ken. "And if there's a place
that's hard to evangelise it should be Newcastle because people have got their fill. They've got money, and on Friday they go out, get drunk off
their skull and try and score with as many women as possible and get up and start again on Monday morning."

Yet the north-east can still celebrate a strong Christian heritage: the
bones of St Cuthbert reside at Durham Cathedral, and the Celtic tradition still flourishes on the Holy Island of Lindisfarne.

"I'm all for those things," said Ken, "as long as we don't become nostalgic about what God is doing. Let's look forward to what he's doing now and what he's going to do - rather than just what he's done." "The past is worth celebrating but let's not get into the "ooh, wasn't it
nice when God was doing this and when he was doing that". Let's move forward and see what he's got for us today."

"When my life begins to fade, you'll be the lamp to guide my way. Shining to eternity."
(Glory)

Ken claimed that there have even been prophecies about revival starting in the region. And Yfriday are doing their bit to be open to that, just as the title of their new album says. Open sums up the heart of this band.

"The album seems to completely be about forgiveness and resting in God's grace," said Ken. "Being the writer, I can see my personal walk through it, the times I've needed God. Maybe it's just the sort of person I am, but I know I keep blowing it, that's why the lyrics represent God's grace and forgiveness all the way through.

"I think the songs are having an impact because they're honest. People can identify with the lyrics through their own failings and their own need for God, grace and resurrection on a daily basis."

That's just where Yfriday are at. With honesty and simplicity, they're
worshipping Jesus in the context of contemporary rock ­ and invite others to join in. And they don't pretend to be something they're not.

'In all seriousness it's just mind-blowing at times when you see what God's doing and feel his presence in the room ministering to people and you just think, "What is going on? But I guess he used a donkey."

Clive Price is Editor of Worship Together, and a freelance writer and
storyteller based in West Sussex.