Thursday, January 9, 2014

NEWS: Tribute to John Yoedi (aka Freedy Krueger): My Brother, by Collin Brophy

I had only known Freedy Krueger for around two and a half years.  In those years he became a close mate and someone I was proud to call my brother. We became friends via Facebook through some common friends, but this turned out to be destiny. Even though we never met face to face, we still spoke via Facebook at least 2-3 times a week. Freedy is a once in a life time friend.  He was always there and ready to talk if you needed to.  He was a very down to earth and a very humble guy and very generous.
It was because of Freedy that I now know how amazing Indonesian metal is.  I have since made friends with other “metal heads” from Indonesia and this is all due to Freedy. With Freedy, it didn’t matter what religion or nationality you were.  If you had a passion for metal, then he would be a friend to you. 
Freedy introduced me to the BUSUK Webzine which I was very impressed with.  Chatting about our problems didn’t seem so huge when we were chatting about music.  Freedy showed me another avenue for my love of music and that was in writing about it and sharing experiences of gigs and reviews with others.  I was then privileged to start writing reviews and having them published on his BUSUK Webzine site.
During our brief, but very connected friendship, Freedy was very generous by posting samples of Indonesian music to me plus various other goodies, etc and we reciprocated by thinking of him and sending him gear, whenever we saw music things from Australia we thought he’d enjoy.  He seemed to be so excited when my wife and I posted an Iron Maiden cloth wall calendar for 2014.  
When Freedy got sick, he was still all about helping out the metal scene and other metal heads.  He was always thinking of himself last even when he was in hospital undergoing treatment.  His illness never made him lose his faith.   Even though I am not a religious person, I sent Freedy some versus from the Koran I found on the web, just to let him know that I was always thinking of him. He never once lost his faith even though he was really sick.   To be honest, I think it made him have even more faith in Allah.
When Freedy and the crew at BUSUK open their metal store, I was so proud and happy for them all.  From what I have read and been told, Freedy did an enormous job in bringing metal to the masses, organising interviews with bands, and setting up metal gigs.  Freedy’s passing has left a massive hole in the metal scene not only in Indonesia, but the rest of the world.  In his own small way, he has touched so many people’s lives in such a positive way and I think that’s why I feel his loss so much.
Freedy was the person who got me into writing reviews for gigs, albums, DVD’s and band interviews, with his and encouragement I wouldn’t have ever had the opportunity to do it, let alone have them published, For that I thank him very much.
I didn’t expect Freedy’s passing to hit me so hard, considering that we had never met.   Now I feel like a close family member has passed.  That’s what Freedy meant to me. He was more of a brother to me then my real brothers, and now there is a massive hole in my life which will be difficult to fill. He always had a kind word to say, never negative and always positive.   Even now, when I have something in my life I want to share with Freedy, I have to stop and think and remind myself that he's no longer with us.  This void will take a long time to fill.
I have so much to be thankful for in my life, but I can never be more thankful for the opportunity of knowing and being a part of John Yoedi’s world and for the opportunities he gave me.  I’m sure that wherever he is now, he is looking down on us all listening to some serious music and feeling blessed to know that he was loved by so many.  R.I.P my brother!

(Published by Collin Brophy, NSW, Australia)

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