The Argues

The Argues moved to the Barrie area three years ago for a host of reasons, all centred around making a serious run at their music. After having lived in Toronto in a small two bedroom bungalow for many years, the family picked up and headed to Springwater where they now have a much larger band house, room for their tour bus and equipment trailer. Sound proof rooms and plenty of space for practice three hours a day everyday means the future is looking bright for the band.

“This move was a blessing for us and one of the best things we did as a family and a band,” said Mike, the band's guitarist and a certified accountant. “It was getting pretty cramped in Toronto and when you’re using equipment as a food table you know it’s time for a change.”

The family are all musically self-taught with no one having any real professional lessons. Mike remembers having extended family get-togethers where they would just jam, until a few people started saying that maybe it was time they took their natural talents and made something of it.

"Our first real gig was in June of 2010 at a Salvation Army fundraiser,” said Mike. “Sabrina was 9 and Lauren was 12. It was nerve-wracking but fun. We continued playing a lot of covers but realized it was time to start thinking on writing and creating our own music.”

Influenced by rock, blues, country and folk, The Argues sound has been compared at times to Tom Petty and The Lumineers. It’s the type of sound that you are likely to hear from many festival around Ontario and beyond over the summer, which suits dad just fine.

“We’ll be at Barrie’s Waterfront Festival May 28 and the huge Kempenfest event June 30 with many more around the province in between and after,” said Mike. “We did the bar thing a couple of times near the beginning, but we are more suited to the festivals and large events of that nature.”

Mom Chantale, who is in charge of the bookings, noted that there is a bit of a learning curve in having such a responsibility. Picking and choosing what events can be done, handling fees and working out distance and time on the road can be a lofty chore. But the drummer for the band knows that so long as the focus is on family and the music, the rest will fall into place.

“We attended a Festivals Ontario conference and that was helpful to know what events were best fit to us and when,” said Chantale. “It is a chore sometimes to balance family time, education, work and music but I’m much happier doing this than having someone else do it for us. It really is a total Argues' project.”

The workload isn’t the only thing Chantale balances. With the family being involved in church for many years, making sure the values they believe in are maintained on a circuit where Christian values may not always be at the forefront. Chantale knows that it is dedication and focus which keeps the family level-headed.

“I am a conservative Christian mom, a rock and roll mom and a bandmate,” said Chantale. “Doing what we do, it would be easy to get wrapped up in wanting to get that next song finished first, or book that show immediately, but there are still day to day family things that need taken care of and that’s where the parenting comes in.”

One of those day-to-day things is the education of both daughters. Lauren is adamant that education is one of the most important aspects of their day but admits it was difficult when she and her sister left the school system to do online schooling.

“It was very difficult at first and took some getting use to,” said Lauren. “There is a natural tendency to procrastinate and work on other things. I fell behind the first year, but have come back around. You just have to learn to create a schedule for yourself and keep it. It’s going great now and allows for so much family time too.”

Family time with her sister in particular isn’t as sibling-rivalry based as one might expect. With mom Chantale joking that the girls probably referee the parents more so, Lauren loves the relationship she has with younger sister Sabrina, even though she knows she can be an over-protective big sister at times.

“I know I’m always trying to look out for Sabrina and maybe I get a little bossy especially in studio,” said the 18-year old bass player and vocalist. “It’s a weird dynamic because despite being younger, Sabrina is pretty much the leader of the band with her vocals and such. It’s a great thing to see and hear though when we all come together for the music and each other.”

Sabrina is a real wonder here as she is a bit of a throwback with a bit of modern rock. A fan of Jane Eyre, Sherlock Holmes and vinyl records, the 15-year old lead singer, percussionist, harmonica-playing pianist is an old soul in many aspects, and then will go out on stage like she did at last year’s Oktoberfest in Kitchener and belt out some Rolling Stones' 'Satisfaction'.

“I grew up loving classic literature, old movies and some classic rock,” said Sabrina, whose sweet sixteen birthday is May 28. “I’ve just always been attracted to the old way of things in that manner, but love a high energy performance on stage.”

Having started performing at such a young age has given the young musician a chance to iron out the stage fright that sometimes comes with performing. Despite some events being hundreds of people, youngest of the family feels at ease on stage.

“I remember being nervous right before a show, like most people are I’m sure,” said Sabrina. “But now it’s more of an excitement thing and once I get out there it is so fun and I just go with it. It’s a place I really love to be.”

The Argues seemingly have found a recipe for success in maintaining family values and mixing in some rock and roll. As for the challenges that face a family of devoted parents and two teenage girls, mom Chantale says it’s been fun for the family so far and they take it day-by-day.

“Even with a name like The Argues, we have had a really great time doing this with little fighting,” said Chantale. “Sometimes I think the reason Mike got involved so heavily is to keep an eye on his daughters. We were in Kitchener last year and a bunch of boys were yelling ‘I love you Sabrina and Lauren’. When they realized who Mike was and that he was on stage too they yelled ‘we love you too Dad’. It was pretty funny, but right now we’re lucky that the girls are focused on education and music so none of the outside distractions have happened-yet.”

The band’s first album, Something New, is set to be released sometime over the summer and is produced by famed Canadian producer and engineer Michael Jack.

For tour dates and more news about the Argues, check them out at www.theargues.ca - Village Media

May 28 is a big day for Springwater’s Sabrina Argue.

Not only is it her 16th birthday, she will also perform on the main stage at the 12th-annual Barrie Waterfront Festival with her family’s band, The Argues.

“We have been playing on the road for about five years now,” Sabrina said. “I’m really looking forward to playing in Barrie for the first time.”

The indie roots-rock band, fronted by sisters Lauren, 18, and Sabrina, 15, features mom Chantal on drums and dad Michael on guitar.

Sabrina said the family works very well as a band.

“We never actually made a decision to become a band. There was always music in the house and our love of music grew as we grew up,” she said. “We started playing together and, by 2010, we decided to start touring.”

Chantal said The Argues have managed to find that sweet spot between family and band.

“It can be a challenge. I mean, one minute I’m a conservative mom and the next I’m the hippy drummer bandmate, but it works,” she said.

The Argues have toured Ontario performing at festivals and events, but they are excited to finally be performing in their new hometown.

“We moved to Springwater three years ago. We have been getting to know a lot of people in Barrie, so it will be nice to play for them,” Chantal said.

The band is also gearing up to release its debut album, Something New, later this spring.

Lauren said she can’t wait for people to hear it.

“We have been working on it for two years,” she said. “We set up a studio in our home and we have been working on it quite a bit. We worked with local producer Michael Jack.”

Chantal said the family has been writing music longer than they’ve been performing.

“We were always writing poetry and creating music. It’s a real dynamic at our show because there are four songwriters on stage and we all have our differences. All our originals are different.”

She added that the band’s covers include new songs, classics, blues and rock.

For more information on The Argues, visit theargues.ca. - Metroland

A Barrie band celebrates the release of their debut album with a performance at the Barrie Waterfront Festival next weekend. It will also mark the first local concert for The Argues since they moved here three years ago.

“We’re very excited,” said Chantale Argue. “We’ve played all over Ontario for the last five or six years and are now getting to show Barrie what we’ve got.”

She is the mother, manager, drummer and one of the songwriters of the indie roots-rock family band. Her husband, Michael - an “accounting nerd by day - rocker by night” and their two children, Sabrina Argue 15 and Lauren Argue 18 will be playing a mix of covers - blues, rock and roll, contemporary - as well as original songs, catchy pop/rock tunes at the BWF.

Michael has always had an interest in music and shortly after meeting Chantale purchased a guitar for her birthday and taught her to play. The couple would play at family gatherings. They married in 2005 and after the birth of their children, discovered they would sing along at home.

Vocal lessons followed for the girls and when their fingers became strong enough, they started learning instruments. Today, the girls front the band and are multi-instrumentalists. They also contribute to the songwriting.

The Argues first show was a fundraiser for the Salvation Army in Toronto in 2010. The decision to focus on music started in 2005 with a move to Toronto.

“We wanted to focus on music as a family - one of my good friends passed away from breast cancer,” she said. “Life is too short - we wanted to do something with music.”

Since then, the band has shared the stage several Canadian musicians such as Jack DeKeyzer and “warmed the stage” for Hotel California, April Wine and Finger Eleven. They have played theatres, bars, corporate events and festivals all over Ontario and plan to perform in the U.S. this year.

The need for more space prompted the family to move north. They needed a place to park their touring van and trailer and they found it in Springwater, where they also built a studio.

The Argues perform on Saturday, May 28 at the Barrie Waterfront Festival, 2:30 p.m. in Heritage Park.

For more, visit www.barriewaterfront.ca. - Sun Media

They’ve got a bus, a band and share the same blood; Partridge Family, anyone?

The Argue family recently moved from Toronto to Barrie to continue doing what they do best, play rock ‘n’ roll together as a family.

With mom and dad, Chantale and Michael respectively on drums and guitar, and daughter Lauren, 15, and Sabrina, 12, on bass, guitar and vocals, their newly finished basement practise room resounds with echoes of the Rolling Stones as Sabrina does a nice cover of Satisfaction.

“We didn’t really decide to be a band,” Sabrina said. A confident lead singer and guitar player, the 12-year-old will lose her braces soon and grow into the rock personae she’s destined to become.

“People started seeing us and saying, ‘we’re not kidding, you guys are good’,” she said.

It all began when the girls were little more than toddlers and their parents played guitar and encouraged the girls to sing along. As Lauren grew big enough to handle the bass and Sabrina started learning keyboard, it was easier to teach them complete songs from the book of rock n’ roll.

“I started singing Alice Cooper when I was little,” Lauren said. From there they graduated to the Beatles, Tom Petty, Elvis, Tom Cochrane and more.

The Argues’ first gig was a Salvation Army fundraiser in 2010 and they haven’t looked back. They’ve played street fairs in Ottawa at the Chateau Laurier, Hockley Valley, and headlined at the Parry Sound Canada Day celebration with an audience of more than 6,000. Finding the perfect home in Barrie, with a big garage (for the 15-foot bus) with steps into their newly finished basement studio was a dream come true.

With both girls e-learning online, missing gigs due to school schedules are a thing of the past.

Down in the sound-proofed room — so they don’t upset their new neighbours — Chantale sets up behind her drums with a Plexiglass sound barrier, as Michael picks up his Gibson, and the two girls grab their Fender Stratocaster and Precision Bass.

Sabrina’s Stones’ cover of Satisfaction is well suited to her smokey voice. She’s confident, not cocky as the lead singer, and the vocal harmonies are well timed and tuned.

Looking forward to getting more gigs this summer in Simcoe County and beyond, the family band says they’re ready to hit the next stage in their careers with booking agent Krista Holmes at KH Management, and hopefully find a producer.

“We’re trying to step it up at this point. We’re working on lots of songs to build up the play list,” Michael said.

Chantale shows off a framed royalty cheque Sabrina received for $4.40 for her song, Hot Shot.

“It’s her first,” she said proudly.

And, by the sounds of things, it won’t be her last. - Sun Media

The Argues are a family with Michael, left, on the guitar and vocal, Sabrina, 11 on keyboards and lead singer, Chantale on the drums and Lauren, 13 on bass and vocals. The band performed at the Charles W. Stockey Centre's weekly Bands on the Bay June 21. This was the group's first performance on a three-concert tour of Georgian Bay with its second performance in Parry Sound at the Canada Day celebration before wrapping up at the Canada Day celebrations at Pointe Au Baril on July 2. - Metroland

Harmonious family band is close and committed. The Argues, from left, Michael, Sabrina, Chantale and Lauren. Submitted photo
To alleviate anyone’s curiosity, let me say that this band doesn’t excel in arguing but does in performing music. This is their last name and when being spoken about they are referred to as: “The Argues” amongst almost everyone they know.
Nestled in their log cabin in the Township of Archipelago, they spend the best of their time as a family and in the last few years as serious artists, creating astounding arrangements.
Michael taught himself to play guitar in his late teens, thinking the guitar was the coolest thing he had ever heard. Still holding his own with both rhythm and lead, Michael also manages ‘The Argues’ while having fun with it all.
Chantale met Michael about 20 years ago.
“For my first birthday of knowing him, he bought me a guitar and we would play cover song, together,” she said.
Ten years ago Chantale started to play drums and their band evolved once their daughters came on the scene.
Lauren, now 13 years old, plays bass guitar, and has mastered the violin and electric piano. Lauren sang when she was very young, which probably laid the groundwork for her songwriting that first started out as poetry. “Songs come to mind,” said Lauren.
Sabrina, soon to be 11 years old, is very comfortable on the electric piano while being proficient with guitars and drums. She does the majority of lead vocals and likes being out front, but she’s quick to explain: “We all try out.”
As it was said in an interview with Image FM, on The Argues Live Internet Concert, this is Canada’s new family band. I tend to agree and admire their closeness and commitment. This harmonious family has included songwriting among their many talents, along with with cross-training on instruments.
They have a demo CD out that was recorded at Metal Works, a top studio in Canada. In the last two years, appearances have been growing and they are among them. The Argues will be opening up Bands on the Bay, this year, at the Charles W. Stockey Centre, Tuesday, June 21. You will hear an amazing new sound of blues, rock and country music that will settle in you like never before. - Metroland

I’m standing on the front steps of a tidy bungalow in North Toronto listening to the muffled throb of a rock band rehearsing in the basement. Normally you’d think, what saintly parents these must be, the ones who let their teenagers practice in their basement. Except in this case, the parents are in the band, too.

Chantale and Michael Argue, along with their multi-instrumentalist daughters, 13-year-old Lauren and 10-year-old Sabrina, make up The Argues, a family band. On a recent weeknight, the four of them and their impressive set-up of amps, keyboards, guitars and drums are crowded into a rehearsal space shared with a washer, dryer, laundry tub, furnace and two desks where the girls do their homework.

Imagine an updated Cowsills (or their sitcom offspring, The Partridge Family), but playing much better music. (A mix of rock classics like “Born to Be Wild,” “Gimme Shelter” and Chuck Berry’s “Carol,” as well as bluesy originals.) The band plays at festivals, fundraisers, pubs and corporate events and has appeared on Rogers TV’s Toronto Talent program and on a 90-minute online concert on ImageFM.ca, the Internet radio station. There is both a web site ( www.theargues.ca) and a Facebook page (The Argues).

It’s not really a family business, though; more of a grand family adventure. And the band ties into Chantale and Michael’s decision, six years ago, to rent.

Michael Argue is a chartered accountant who, at 20, bought his first condo in Scarborough, where he grew up, and in the coming two decades bought and sold another condo and a total of four houses. He met Chantale, in the early ’90s and the couple bought a house from a plan in a Pickering subdivision.

In 1996, Chantale was a claims adjuster for a major insurance company and Michael worked for an accounting firm but wanted to start his own home-based business. They were also planning a family so, as Michael says, “we thought, while we still have two T4s maybe we should buy a bigger house.”

The dream home was custom-built, close to 3,000 square feet with five bedrooms backing onto the Rouge River in Pickering. It had a separate side entrance leading to Michael’s office in the basement, where he had several staff and saw clients. Michael helped build a 1,000 square foot deck over a sloping yard with a hot tub and bar. They had Lauren and Sabrina. Life, one would think from the outside, was perfect.

But the couple had nagging doubts. “I was working late at night and part of the weekends,” says Michael. “There were repairs, upgrades, new windows. I loved playing music but there was rarely enough time.”

“I was working fulltime, always the last one to pick up her children from daycare,” Chantale adds, “We started re-evaluating how we wanted to raise our kids. And we realized that we’d been worshipping our home to a point that made us uncomfortable.”

Then they went through a six-month period of watching Chantale’s best friend since high school lose a battle with breast cancer. She left behind a grieving husband and two children. A month later, while on their annual holiday to Florida, Chantale and Michael decided to sell the house.

“The number one reason was freedom,” says Chantale. “Life’s too short. We want to do things we’ve always dreamed of doing.”

So, in 2005, they sold the house and their second car, Chantale quit her job, and they rented their current home, a 650-square-foot, two-bedroom bungalow. The lovely landlords, a European couple, charge them $1,350 a month. At first they thought they might just rent for a year, but they discovered they loved renting.

“I’m an accountant who’s also a dreamer,” says Michael. “Prices are high. If I bought the house across the street, I’d put 20 per cent down and have a $600,000 mortgage. And interest rates are low now so there’s nowhere to go but up. By investing a portion of our income, I think we’re financially ahead and, most important, we’re free to do the things we want to do.”

They’re not comp - Toronto Star

Family fourpiece is more than just mama’s and papa’s

Blues and ’70s rock ’n roll have a certain grit and grime to them that is a distinctively different sound from today’s Top 40. Vocalists who have been down in the dumps and on top of the world bring more than words to this type of music — they bring the raw pain and true delight based on life experience to bring the songs alive.

Rockie Raccoon’s, a bar at Yonge and Eglinton, has such live music on Saturday nights. On this particular evening, the four-piece band is working through its set of blues and rock. The lead singer has called up a range of emotion and is soulfully injecting it into every note. You can only imagine what trials and tribulations she must have gone through to deliver lyrics with such rawness.

But you do really have to imagine.

Because the lead singer is 11.

Sabrina and her 14-year-old sister, Lauren, share lead vocals in their band, The Argues. Their father, Michael, plays guitar and their mother, Chantale, plays drums in the band that carries their last name.

“As soon as the kids were born we started singing together,” Michael Argue says. “When the kids got old enough to play, we gave them instruments. Lauren got the bass and Sabrina the keys.”

Six years ago the family sold their five-bedroom house in Pickering and moved into a two-bedroom bungalow rental at Avenue and Lawrence to be closer to the city so they could fully commit their family’s efforts to the band’s success. And the move seems to be working.

“We started by just playing in our basement and our neighbour heard us and asked if we would play at a street party,” Michael says. “We played another neighbour’s 50th birthday party and that led to a corporate gig playing a Mr. Sub franchise opening.

“Last year we played 25 shows, including Parry Sound’s Canada Day festival and Lobsterfest in Pointe Au Baril,” he added.

At those two shows alone, the Argues performed for nearly 10,000 people.

When they first started booking gigs in bars, Chantale would put Lauren and Sabrina to bed right after school and then wake them up at 10 p.m. in preparation for their sets, which sometimes went as late as 2 a.m.

The parents insist starting a family band wasn’t part of some master plan to help keep their children on the straight and narrow under their watchful eye. Michael says it was a natural phenomenon.

“The more we played together the more it just seemed to feel right,” he says. “We would write a song together, perform it live and get great feedback. Things kept falling into place and it has never been calculated.

“This is something everyone seemed to be doing even in their off time,” Michael added. “You would hear one of the girls playing their guitar in their room while the other worked on lyrics at the dining room table.”

Indeed, music has always woven itself through the family’s lives.

Chantale and Michael met one summer while Michael was working as a lifeguard at the pool in Chantale’s condo. He courted her under the veil of teaching her guitar by the poolside.

It would be a mistake to believe the band is just a dream of mom and dad while the kids are along only for the ride before they’re old enough to ditch the nightly two-hour practice sessions and start doing their own thing.

“I dream of getting bigger and bigger,” Sabrina says. “I want the band to get better known. This is what I want to do for a living.”

In fact, Lauren does a lot of the songwriting and figures out much of the music on guitar during the summer at the family cabin.

“I like it,” Lauren says of the solace of their log cabin island.

The Argues built the cabin themselves on a tiny island three hours north of Toronto and spend most of the summer there. It’s much cozier now than the year they built it.

That initial summer they had only a 100 sq. ft. bunkie to sleep in. They cooked their meals over an open flame. And due to the construction, even the old outhouse had been to - Toronto Today - Multicom Media

The Harbour Street Fish Bar in Collingwood has been offering a steady stream of local and touring talent to provide another local venue for live music. This Saturday they will be presenting The Argues Family Band. Currently based in Springwater, Ontario, the band consists of multi-instrumentalist sisters Lauren and Sabrina Argue with their father Michael and mother Chantale.

It’s an interesting dynamic, with Mom and Dad providing backup for their talented daughters. With family bands it is more common for the children to be brought along as apprentices to their parents’ talent (e.g. The Staple Singers, The Carter Family), but in this case the band is built around the youngest family member, while Mom plays drums and Dad doubles as guitar player and roadie.

Michael Argue, the Dad and only male member of the band, is clearly more than a roadie. His love of making music has virtually made musicians out of his family, presenting his wife Chantal with a guitar soon after they met and then as each of their two daughters came along, encouraging and developing their musical talent. He is the band’s manager.

With Mom and Dad playing and singing together, the girls began to take an interest at an early age. Lauren took up the bass as soon as she was big enough to handle it and both she and Sabrina learned to play keyboards. At first they played cover songs, mainly roots rock, but Lauren was a poet and so original song writing naturally evolved. Now all four contribute to the song writing, each bringing their own style to the ensemble. To accommodate the family’s musical career, the girls were home schooled via the Internet, allowing them to tour without missing classes.

Michael and Chantal both have backgrounds of relatively prosaic occupations, he an accountant and she an insurance adjuster. While these careers provided them with financial security and a large home, the pressures associated with the jobs didn’t give them the quality of life they craved. By increments, they gave up the big house and evolved something of a gypsy lifestyle as their family band developed. They played festivals, corporate gigs, and pubs as the band developed a reputation, with Mom Chantal in charge of booking the gigs. The process, so far, has brought them to their first album release this year with “Something New” produced by famed Canadian producer and engineer Michael Jack.

Their home in Springwater contains a soundproofed studio and rehearsal space so that the music can take a central place in their lives. The property is big enough to accommodate their tour bus and equipment trailer.

“This move was a blessing for us and one of the best things we did as a family and a band,” Mike told Shawn Gibson of Barrie Today,“It was getting pretty cramped in Toronto and when you’re using equipment as a food table you know it’s time for a change.”

Despite their name, the band thrives on a close familial relationship, sharing the joy of following a dream they all share. And if you think they sound like The Partridge Family, think again. Their style is closer to Tom Petty and The Stones.

The band performs at The Harbour Street Fish Bar this Saturday February 4th from 8 to 11. There is a $5 cover. - Meaford Live Music

A Barrie-area family hopes to strike a note with music lovers, with a sound no one could Argue with.

The Argue family has been performing together for the past six years, but their love of music goes back much further to when now-spouses Chantale and Michael started dating.

“My first birthday when we were dating, he got me an acoustic guitar and told me, ‘I’m going to teach you how to play’,” Chantale said. “It just started a journey for us.

“I joke that it was my first birthday gift, and my first Christmas gift was a fishing reel. Pretty much everything we do now is either music or fishing,” she said. “He’s been true to his loves, because 25 years later we’re still fishing and doing music.”

The couple’s daughters, Lauren now 19, and Sabrina, 16, grew up in a home filled with music.

“As I grew up there was always music in the house, we were always playing music,” Sabrina said. “We all love music, and we just started playing together at family events and people were saying, ‘you’re good’.”

They launched The Argues six years ago, after Sabrina turned nine. Late last year, they released their debut, Something New, featuring six original tracks.

The album was produced in the family’s basement studio, a two-year process that began after they moved to a home just outside Barrie in 2013.

Their music has started to get radio play on community and college stations on both sides of the border. They also made CBC’s Fresh Air playlist in December.

They played the Main Street Market in Wasaga Beach last summer, though Chantale noted rain hampered their performance. She said they donated $500 from their performance fee back to the town to go toward the cost of buying a cover for the small stage used for bands.

The Argues are coming back to the market this summer, performing in July.

It’s tough to pin down the Argues’ sound, with its mix of country, pop, and rock.

“Your guess is as good as ours,” Chantelle said with a laugh. “We’re trying to find a home."

The family has settled on the genre of ‘roots rock’, a bit of a catch-all that captures a mix of a variety of musical styles.

“We’re not really a country band, but we do country covers.”

The family has also found there’s more to the music business than just music.

“We’re starting to make some contacts and build a network. A lot of it is about getting to know people and building relationships to get gigs, to get people to listen,” Chantale said.

The family shares writing duties, with either the parents or the sisters crafting lyrics or music, before they come together to refine a song.

“One of us will come up with an idea, and then we’ll come together to work on it,” Sabrina said. “Sometimes we come up with the lyrics first, sometimes it’s a melody line, or a riff.”

The family’s favourite spot to write is at a log cabin on an island north of Parry Sound.

“It’s a great retreat for us and we get to totally unplug,” Chantale said. “All we do is write and fish. We joke we wrote (the album) on tea … they talk about sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll, but hot tea and hot coffee is what gives us the edge.”

The sisters have been getting their education online, which gives them the flexibility to focus on their music. Michael still has his ‘day-job’ as an accountant, adds Chantale.

“It’s a lot of work, a labour of love. It’s been a lot of sacrifice,” Chantale said. “It’s been making some choices with our time and our resources, but we believe in what we’re doing and we enjoy it.” - Simcoe. com

January 31, 2017

The Harbour Street Fish Bar in Collingwood has been offering a steady stream of local and touring talent to provide another local venue for live music. This Saturday they will be presenting The Argues Family Band. Currently based in Springwater, Ontario, the band consists of multi-instrumentalist sisters Lauren and Sabrina Argue with their father Michael and mother Chantale.

It’s an interesting dynamic, with Mom and Dad providing backup for their talented daughters. With family bands it is more common for the children to be brought along as apprentices to their parents’ talent (e.g. The Staple Singers, The Carter Family), but in this case the band is built around the youngest family member, while Mom plays drums and Dad doubles as guitar player and roadie.

Michael Argue, the Dad and only male member of the band, is clearly more than a roadie. His love of making music has virtually made musicians out of his family, presenting his wife Chantal with a guitar soon after they met and then as each of their two daughters came along, encouraging and developing their musical talent. He is the band’s manager.

With Mom and Dad playing and singing together, the girls began to take an interest at an early age. Lauren took up the bass as soon as she was big enough to handle it and both she and Sabrina learned to play keyboards. At first they played cover songs, mainly roots rock, but Lauren was a poet and so original song writing naturally evolved. Now all four contribute to the song writing, each bringing their own style to the ensemble. To accommodate the family’s musical career, the girls were home schooled via the Internet, allowing them to tour without missing classes.

Michael and Chantal both have backgrounds of relatively prosaic occupations, he an accountant and she an insurance adjuster. While these careers provided them with financial security and a large home, the pressures associated with the jobs didn’t give them the quality of life they craved. By increments, they gave up the big house and evolved something of a gypsy lifestyle as their family band developed. They played festivals, corporate gigs, and pubs as the band developed a reputation, with Mom Chantal in charge of booking the gigs. The process, so far, has brought them to their first album release this year with “Something New” produced by famed Canadian producer and engineer Michael Jack.

Their home in Springwater contains a soundproofed studio and rehearsal space so that the music can take a central place in their lives. The property is big enough to accommodate their tour bus and equipment trailer.

“This move was a blessing for us and one of the best things we did as a family and a band,” Mike told Shawn Gibson of Barrie Today,“It was getting pretty cramped in Toronto and when you’re using equipment as a food table you know it’s time for a change.”

Despite their name, the band thrives on a close familial relationship, sharing the joy of following a dream they all share. And if you think they sound like The Partridge Family, think again. Their style is closer to Tom Petty and The Stones.

The band performs at The Harbour Street Fish Bar this Saturday February 4th from 8 to 11. There is a $5 cover. - Meaford Live Music

Jan 29, 2017

The Argues lined up to perform in Collingwood, Wasaga Beach in 2017

Ian Adams/Metroland
Sabrina (left) and Chantale Argue make up half of The Argues, a family band that's recently released their debut CD, and is lined up to perform across the Simcoe County area for 2017.

The Argues perform live on 104.5 The Dock on Feb. 2 at 2 p.m.; Feb. 4 at the Harbour St. Fish Bar in Collingwood; in Wasaga Beach July 7 through 9 at the Main Street Market as part of the town’s summer concert series.

Wasaga Sun
By Ian Adams
A Barrie-area family hopes to strike a note with music lovers, with a sound no one could Argue with.

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Concert at Midland Cultural Centre...
The Argue family has been performing together for the past six years, but their love of music goes back much further to when now-spouses Chantale and Michael started dating.

“My first birthday when we were dating, he got me an acoustic guitar and told me, ‘I’m going to teach you how to play’,” Chantale said. “It just started a journey for us.

“I joke that it was my first birthday gift, and my first Christmas gift was a fishing reel. Pretty much everything we do now is either music or fishing,” she said. “He’s been true to his loves, because 25 years later we’re still fishing and doing music.”

The couple’s daughters, Lauren now 19, and Sabrina, 16, grew up in a home filled with music.

“As I grew up there was always music in the house, we were always playing music,” Sabrina said. “We all love music, and we just started playing together at family events and people were saying, ‘you’re good’.”

They launched The Argues six years ago, after Sabrina turned nine. Late last year, they released their debut, Something New, featuring six original tracks.

The album was produced in the family’s basement studio, a two-year process that began after they moved to a home just outside Barrie in 2013.

Their music has started to get radio play on community and college stations on both sides of the border. They also made CBC’s Fresh Air playlist in December.

They played the Main Street Market in Wasaga Beach last summer, though Chantale noted rain hampered their performance. She said they donated $500 from their performance fee back to the town to go toward the cost of buying a cover for the small stage used for bands.

The Argues are coming back to the market this summer, performing in July.

It’s tough to pin down the Argues’ sound, with its mix of country, pop, and rock.

“Your guess is as good as ours,” Chantelle said with a laugh. “We’re trying to find a home."

The family has settled on the genre of ‘roots rock’, a bit of a catch-all that captures a mix of a variety of musical styles.

“We’re not really a country band, but we do country covers.”

The family has also found there’s more to the music business than just music.

“We’re starting to make some contacts and build a network. A lot of it is about getting to know people and building relationships to get gigs, to get people to listen,” Chantale said.

The family shares writing duties, with either the parents or the sisters crafting lyrics or music, before they come together to refine a song.

“One of us will come up with an idea, and then we’ll come together to work on it,” Sabrina said. “Sometimes we come up with the lyrics first, sometimes it’s a melody line, or a riff.”

The family’s favourite spot to write is at a log cabin on an island north of Parry Sound.

“It’s a great retreat for us and we get to totally unplug,” Chantale said. “All we do is write and fish. We joke we wrote (the album) on tea … they talk about sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll, but hot tea and hot coffee is what gives us the edge.”

The sisters have been getting their education online, which gives them the flexibility to focus on their music. Michael still has his ‘day-job’ as an accountant, adds Chantale.

“It’s a lot of work, a labour of love. It’s been a lot of sacrifice,” Chantale said. “It’s been making some choices with our time and our resources, but we believe in what we’re doing and we enjoy it.” - Wasaga Sun

Don’t be fooled by a name or a title- there’s nothing antagonistic or novel here- though that doesn’t mean it isn’t good music. This Canadian family band instead offer smooth, uptempo indie-rock with a ’70s feel that makes warm use of slide guitars and even warmer harmonies. Fronted by the younger pair of the family, though they’re still in their teens, they perform like seasoned vets, incorporating pop, country and roots fun into this slick version of Americana. If you’ve got a soft spot for Fleetwood Mac or Grace Potter’s early work, these six tunes are for you. - New Noise Magazine

Having read the above promo piece I was half expecting something that might not be an easy fit for Beehive Candy. 'Run Till You Drop' surprised me, as have all six songs in the collection. Musically they put out some bluesy and rocking material, vocals and harmonies are good (don't expect a Bourbon soaked Janis Joplin sound) and the songs are indeed melodic and pretty catchy. Thankfully they ain't The Partridge Family. - Beehive Candy.com

If you are looking for a wholesome Family Classic Rock album, then you definitely have to check out The Argues Something New. The sound of the album blends actually quite a few different sounds, and dare I say decades as well. With the instrument selection and style of play that you hear throughout the album really tells the tale and picks away at different times in music.

The opening track “Run Till You Drop” on Something new is my favourite song from the album. The upbeat sound and tempo should be enough to win you over as the song progresses, with this element and with the inclusion of the lead and backing vocals are what does it for me. The Combination of the Lead and Backing vocals are definitely a driving force in the track. Within the merger of the backing and lead vocals, it’s the combination of the tones and mix that really makes the vocals work so well and stand out the way they do. I also found that this track also helps define my pick off of having different generations embedded within each track, within the intro the keys really help add that 70’s sound to help push out the electric guitar lead. Now I know this is being quite a knick pick here but the simplicity and the noticeability of it is too much not to say anything, but the use of the wooden stick percussion to add as a filler and a extra adds just the right sound in certain spots in the song.

Up next is another 70’s track but with updated elements with a song titled “The Best is Yet To Be” the Lead and Backing vocals once again shine in the song and give the song a early and updated rock sound. The keys really give the song the 70’s kick, I really like how they float along in the song and go with the flow and don’t over saturate the song. In fact they take the need out for the sound of an electric guitar and let the acoustic guitar really break out in the track.

“Living Out Lives” gives Something New the full on pop exposure. Not the bubblegum top 40 style, but the classic Pop upbeat style. The keys are the strong element next to the vocals throughout the song. The slide guitar really adds that extra layer to the song, and acts more than just a filler in the track as well. The overall mix of the track with all of the layers in the song are nicely put together. - Kingston Music Reviews