Roxus
| Company type | Band |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music |
| Founded | 1987 |
| Defunct | 1993 |
| Headquarters | Melbourne , Australia |
| Products | Music albums, singles |
Roxus was a hard rock group from Australia that operated between 1987 and 1993. The ensemble consisted of Juno Roxas on lead vocals, Dragan Stanić handling guitar duties, Darren Danielson on drums, John 'Stones' Nixon playing bass, and Andy Shanahan on keyboards. Their first album, Nightstreet, released in August 1991, climbed to No. 5 on the ARIA Albums Chart. The single "Where Are You Now?" emerged as their highest-charting track, reaching No. 13 on the ARIA Singles Chart and earning a gold certification.
History
Originating in 1987 under the name Bah Ragah in Melbourne's Springvale area, Roxus initially featured Joseph La Ferlita (guitar), Darren Danielson (drums), John Nixon (bass), Juno Roxas (vocals), and Andy Shanahan (keyboards). They developed a loyal live audience by combining melodic hard rock influenced by Van Halen with elements of funk. In 1989, Roxus served as the opening act for prominent international groups Poison and Bon Jovi during their Australian tours. That same year, Dragan Stanić replaced La Ferlita on guitar.
Promoter Ian (Molly) Meldrum took notice of the band and signed them to his Melodian imprint affiliated with Mushroom Records. In 1989, Roxus released two singles: "Stand Back" and "Body Heat". The following year saw the release of a live EP featuring live renditions of these songs.
In April 1991, Roxus toured as support for the American band Warrant. Their debut album Nightstreet was subsequently issued in September and peaked at No. 5 on the ARIA Albums Chart. The July single "Where Are You Now?" became their most popular release, achieving No. 13 on the ARIA Singles Chart and No. 11 on the AMR Singles Chart. Later singles included "Bad Boys" which reached No. 39 on ARIA and "Jimi G".
In 1992, Roxus collaborated with American AOR producer Jeff Paris at Melbourne’s Platinum Recorders to record four tracks for a second album: "Invisible Man", "What You Don't Know", "Stop Playin' With My Heart", and "All The Way". Roxas and Stanić completed mixing these songs alongside Paris in Los Angeles; however, the full album was never finalized. Two singles were released in 1994 before the group dissolved later that year.
Afterwards
Following the breakup of Roxus, Juno Roxas embarked on a solo career, releasing the album Far From Here through Melodian in 1994. He has continued his work as both a musician and producer in Los Angeles and Melbourne. Stanić stayed active within the local scene through involvement with bands such as De-Arrow, Among Thieves, and Kream. By March 1993, Danielson and Nixon had joined Melbourne-based rock outfit Chocolate Starfish. Meanwhile, Shanahan shifted focus to education as a Sound Production lecturer at RMIT University.
Studio albums
| Title | Details | Peak chart positions | Certification |
|---|---|---|---|
| AUS | |||
| Nightstreet |
|
5 |
|
Extended plays
| Title | Information | Highest chart rankings |
|---|---|---|
| AUS | ||
| Live! |
|
33 |
Singles
| Year | Title | Highest chart rankings | Certification | Included on album |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS | ||||
| 1989 | "Stand Back" | 44 | Nightstreet | |
| "Body Heat" | 60 | Single not part of any album | ||
| 1991 | "Where Are You Now?" | 13 |
|
Nightstreet |
| "Bad Boys" | 39 | |||
| "Jimi G" | 68 | |||
| 1994 | "Almost Summer" | 120 | Singles released independently of any album | |
| "Eternity" | 147 |