Thousands of music lovers attended Brantford’s CallHome Music Festival at Lions Park on Saturday, July 25, 2026.
The two-day event welcomed residents and out-of-town visitors who enjoyed live music, drinks and food from roughly 12 vendors.
The event kicked off on Friday afternoon with performances across two stages. The main stage featured Battle of the Bands winners Full Throttle, Fefe Dobson, Matthew Good and his band, and headliner Bush, while over on the side stage, Hey Brother, Foolproof, Circle of Black and 50 Mission, all took turns performing in between.
Fans returned to the park on Saturday evening for another round of live music. Treading Zero, Frontline Poets, Gag Order and Barstool Confession all performed on the side stage while Sumo Cyco, Econoline Crush, Gob, and headliners, The Offspring, took over on the main stage.
Ahead of the event, organizer Jamie Stephens said the lineup represented a major moment for the festival, with two long-awaited headliners finally landing in Brantford.
“It’s definitely the biggest concert Brantford’s ever seen, and probably will see for a while until we figure it out next year,” he said. “It’s a huge year for us. Our two headlining bands are ones that we’ve been trying to get for years, and so the fact that we were able to get both of them in the same year is just over the top for us.”
Throughout the weekend, attendees took in Brantford Wrestling matches, tried their hand at axe-throwing, shopped from on-site vendors, enjoyed refreshments and discovered new-to-them artists alongside familiar favourites.
Chantelle Dion and Stephane Vincent, who are originally from London, Ontario, said they travelled all the way from the Sudbury area to attend the big event and were enjoying the lineup.
“It’s been fantastic, it’s such a vibe,” said Dion. “We stopped at a couple places on our trip down here, and we were telling people where we were going and who was playing, and everyone was like, ‘Oh my god, that band is from my childhood, I hope you have such a great time!”
When it came to the performances themselves, the pair said several acts stood out for both their personal connections to the music and their stage presence.
“Matthew Good was definitely so nostalgic for me, so that was super special, but Sumo Cyco absolutely killed it,” said Vincent. “It was really impressive what they did on stage. I’ve seen both Gob and The Offspring before, so I know they’re going to be a lot of fun, but I’m really excited to see The Offspring again.”
Dion added, “Matthew Good was really amazing. I have to say that was a bucket list item for me, but Fefe Dobson was a total vibe… she really brought it. It was just so fun and all the women were just feeling it. I really enjoyed that.”
In a post made to social media after Saturday night’s event, Stephens thanked everyone who made the festival possible.
“On behalf of my partners, my team, committee, volunteers and sponsors, I want to say thank you Brantford,” he said. “Thank you for supporting our festival. What started out with Lance [Calbeck] and I, literally on a napkin downtown in Harmony Square about 13 years ago now, has turned into The Offspring and Bush in Brantford.”
Kimberly De Jong’s reporting is funded by the Canadian government through its Local Journalism Initiative.The funding allows her to report rural and agricultural stories from Blandford-Blenheim and Brant County. Reach her at kimberly.dejong@brantbeacon.ca.
