Argus are a 5 piece band that originated in 2008, when the two guitarists (Wim Wassenberg and Ton van Extel) decided to start a band and started playing their favorite band Wishbone Ash. As they all are great fans of Wishbone Ash, and love their twin guitars, they decided to play covers of Wishbone Ash. For that they found a local singer Ed Wezenberg, who showed his interest singing in the band and found a drummer Jos van de Heuvel and a bass player, Ed de groot, to make some music. Though, they did not a clue of what they would sound. As leap of destiny, they convinced Frans Nooijen for the keyboards on the condition he would write his own songs and lyrics.
Then was the time for Ed Wezeberg to leave the band because he did not want to sing their own songs and the band Argus was formed (it was named after the classic album of Wishbone Ash)
With the addition of Frans Nooijen (vocals and keyboards) and Ed de Groot (bass guitar) and Sven de Waal (drums on Tell Me!) they have started to work on their songs, from melodic guitar work, with bluesy guitar solos to heavy guitar work. With the use of an original Minimoog for some soloing and a roaring Hammond, espherical synths underneath, with a solid foundation of drums and bass, Argus came to the sound they have today. The use of the Theremin also occurs regularly in the songs of Argus, which creates a mysterious atmosphere and makes the music somewhat unique in the prog world.
In January 2016 Argus released its first full length “Tell Me!” which sold pretty well around the world. Sven (who, by the way, played the CD) unfortunately had to hand over the drum sticks to Marijn Schellekens, who takes over the parts very deservingly, due to lack of time.
In 2018 they started with 6 new tracks from “The outsider” spread over 59 minutes, each telling their story. Again Pink Floyd influences, especially guitar solos are never far away. Beautiful spherical soundscapes with melodic guitar work, Hammond escapades and mini Moog solos alternate under a solid foundation of drums and bass. The Theremin also plays a nice role here.
Album cover, designed by Wim wassenberg
Band Line-Up:
Wim wassenberg; Lead guitar, Synth’s and backing vocals
Marijn Schellekens; drums and backing vocals
Ed de Groot; Bas guitar and bas pedals
Ton van Extel; rhythm guitar
Frans Nooijen; Lead vocals, backing vocals, keys, theremin
Read our review here.
I’m just a lucky guy who has chosen metal to live with for a long time. Metal changed my life for good. It made me more confident and stronger. Metalheads are naturally far away from the mass mediocrity and don’t accept impostures from anybody else. Metal is more than music, it’s a life changing oportunity!