KINGDOM COME FESTIVAL 26 REPORT, PART 1 (FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2026)

 

What was my dream? Seeing The Daniel Band at KCF What was the dream of Concert Foto's photographer Chad Fenner (red hair, lower center)? Photographing The Daniel Band at KCF. 

Last weekend (June 19-20, '26) was my fourth consecutive Kingdom Come Festival (referred to subsequently as KCF, not to be confused with KFC, though both include drumsticks). In '23, Becky suggested I go on Saturday but not use time off. The following three years, she said, "Go to both days. Enjoy yourself." (Note - technically, it gets started on Thursday, but I don't like driving at night, so I only go during the day on Friday and Saturday.

If you've been reading this blog awhile, you'll notice I usually have a follow-up where I cover both days. This year, I'm going to have a separate blog for each days. Several reasons. 

1. It makes each blog shorter for the readers.
2. The more I go, the fuller the days are, so I have more to include.
3. Both days this year have a special activity, and as a result both days and thus I'm separating them.

I started off Friday volunteering at the welcome booth from opening at 10:00am to 2:30. There's an internal conflict - at 10am, there's a prayer and worship time, allotted two hours, While I want to do both, on Fridays I hear a couple of the worship songs led by the , share any requests with The Subculture Pastor Dale Vaughn, and run off to the welcome booth. During that time, I snuck into the Subculture Stage to hear a little of Brightstar, then grabbed lunch from the concession stand, which I ate while listening to rapper B-Wayde, and manage to get back to my post early (that shocked me!),

A year old picture from last year of me at the Welcome station. 

Jay, worship leader of The Subculture in Illinois.

Rapper B Wayde on the main stage.

Brightstar on the Subculture Stage at Kingdom Come Festival with photographer Chad Fenner

When I finished my shift, I did something not typical. From 2:30 to 4:00 I bounced back and forth between the main stage to The Subculture Stage to the Acoustic Stage and Coffee House (also sponsored by The Subculture), catching one song at one, two at the other, and having a visit or two to the Merch tent. It wasn't as frantic for the following couple of hours. During that time, I found a couple of new favorite band (Oak & Linden, and Jason Wayne from Drown The Planet). Of course, there were other already favorite bands I heard such as Reclaim the Day, Becca Sugg (singer of Reclaim the Day, who also did an acoustic set), I Am The Pendragon, and Chris Bousum. 

Oh, I'm talking about the music. But is the Gospel preached? Yes. Trevor Heyd of xstaytruex Ministries had a set where he shared the gospel. Others did so as well. I mentied Dale Vaughn above? He's pastor of The Subculture in Illinois, which has several ministries in the area as well as church. He brought along a group that he hear called the Castros, and asked them to share. In the above photo, you'll notice photographer (Flash Mob) has red hair. There's a reason, ministry related, which I'll share in Part 2.

Dale Vaughn, of the band As We Are and pastor of The Subculture, at The Subculture Stage at KCF 

Reclaim The Day on the Main Stage.

Me with Jason Wayne from Drown The Planet, in the Merchandise Tent. 
 

Oak & Linden at the Subculture Coffee House & Acoustic Stage

Trevor Heyd of xstaytruex Ministries. He did an excellent job sharing the Gospel (as did other artists).

The Castros at the Subculture Stage.

  

 

Me with Matt Moore. Besides being a great artist, Moore is the emcee for the Main Stage every year.

Becca Sugg, lead singer of Reclaim The Day (l) and her sister Miranda Brown at  the Acoustic Stage.

Kevin (Moose) Bush (white hat, pink jacket) and Jerrod Cunningham (mask) of
I Am The Pendragon on the Subculture Stage at Kingdom Come Festival..

Chris Bousum at the Coffee House and Acoustic Stage.

And then came the highlight of the day.

On the top of my bucket list was to hear The Daniel Band in person. I discovered them when they were in concert twice at Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa in the early '80's, but never had a chance to see catch a concert. That bucket list item was fulfilled Friday at 6pm, when Daniel Band took the main stage. It was the blessing I expected it to be. That set had several favorites such as "He's The Creator," "Run From The Darkness," "I'm Sorry," "Never Again," "Two Roads," and "Somebody Loves You." I had the honor of hearing the riffs and solos and melodies and the lyrics I've heard on pre-recorded material for over four decades.

The highlight: I was able to take a few seconds to thank Bassist/Vocalist Dan McCabe for blessing me for years with the songs "Spiritual Game" and "Here I Am." 

Tony Rossi of The Daniel Band, on the Main Stage.

There was a voice in my head talking about feeling entitled. But another voice told me that the real reason I'm a Daniel Band fan is not because of Tony Rossi's great guitar (though it is great) or Dan McCabe's vocals (though they also were great), but because the band had a heart for evangelism and also edified fellow believers as well.

Daniel McCabe of the Daniel Band.

ALBUM REVIEW - "STRAIGHT AHEAD" BY THE DANIEL BAND

In the early '80's, Christian music saw not one, not two, but three albums called "Straight Ahead": Jamie Owens-Collins in '81, Amy Grant in '84, and in between, The Daniel Band ('83). Which do I like best? Technically, it's a two way tie, but one of those two is The Daniel Band. Their debut project, "On Rock," has always been one of my favorite albums, and "Straight Ahead" is a worthy follow-up.

Let me divide the songs in two categories. I'll start with the majority - those with bassist Dan McCabe doing lead vocals. All of them were good, but five of the seven stand out: "You're All I Need," "Here I Am," "Reality," "Come Into My Life," and "Comin' Home." "Here I Am" is a song that has always had a special place in my life. By the way, two of the songs are demos from "On Rock": an extended version of "Free From Sin" and "I'm Sorry." (I didn't note anything different standing out on the latter.)

Guitarist Tony Rossi did the singing on the remaining three songs. The title track was a typical hard rock song; the others were not. "T'ank You" is a pop/island style song, while "In My Mind" (the last track before the two demos) was more of an acoustic ballad.

I absolutely love this album, and highly recommend it.

ALBUM REVIEW - "ON ROCK" BY THE DANIEL BAND

 Back in the early '80's, Orange County CA station KYMS would broadcast Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa's live Saturday concerts. In '81, The Daniel Band, not to be confused with Daniel Amos, was one of the artists. At first, I thought they were a little too hard rock for my tastes. But a year later, they came back, and a friend heard them practice and raved about them. So I listened to them over the radio, and was hooked. For the next month I looked every week to find out if their new album was out, and when I saw "On Rock" on the shelves, one of those albums came home with me.

There are certain artists that have such a strong first song on their debut album that it sounds like they're making sure everybody knows they've arrived. Songs like "More Than A Feeling" by Boston or "Feels Like The First Time" by Foreigner or "Loud and Clear" by Stryper. Add "He's the Creator" from The Daniel Band to that list. Guitarist Tony Rossi's opening riffs capture my attention, combined with lead vocalist Dan McCabe reminding us that, yes, God is the Creator of the universe. Somebody, please talk your group into covering it, because we need to hear that song again. That's not the only song on the project that needs to be heard by today's audience: "Undercover Christian" and "Spiritual Game" both are strong messages to the church to return to their first love.

There is not one mediocre song on the project, but some stand out. "I'm  Sorry" features unforgettable guitar picking by Rossi, and if you need a pick-up, "You Don't Need The Blues," one of the few times Rossi takes the lead vocals, will deliver. "Never Again" was entered into a contest in Toronto and came in 3rd place in a tough competition. If you hear it, you'll not be surprised. 

I can talk about the other songs, too, but I first want to mention a difference between the album that came out in '82 and the collecter's edition. The latter adds two songs to the 11 original tunes: "It All Turns To Rain" (a song that immediately made my list of Daniel Band favorites) and "I Give You All."