rooArt was an Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

n independent record label

Independent record label

An independent record label is a record label operating without the funding of or outside the organizations of the major record labels. A great number of bands and musical acts begin on independent labels.-Overview:...

, founded in 1988 by INXS

INXS

INXS are an Australian rock band, formed as The Farriss Brothers in 1977 in Sydney, New South Wales. Mainstays are Garry Gary Beers on bass guitar, Andrew Farriss on guitar/keyboards, Jon Farriss on drums, Tim Farriss on lead guitar and Kirk Pengilly on guitar/sax...

's then-manager, Chris Murphy. The label's roster included several well-known Australian bands and artists such as Crow

Crow (Australian band)

Crow are an Australian rock band that is best known for three albums released in the 90s. Founded by songwriters Peter Fenton and Peter Archer in Sydney in 1986, Crow ceased all activity in 1999, only to begin playing again in 2007....

, Ratcat

Ratcat

Ratcat were an Australian indie rock band of the late 1980s and early 1990s fronted by vocalist Simon Day. Their combination of indie pop songwriting and energetic punk-style guitar won them fans from both the indie and skate-punk communities.-Waterfront:...

, Screaming Jets

Screaming Jets

The Screaming Jets are an Australian hard rock band formed in Newcastle in 1989 by front man Dave Gleeson on vocals, Grant Walmsley on guitar and Paul Woseen on bass guitar and backing vocals...

, You Am I

You Am I

You Am I are an Australian alternative rock band, fronted by vocalist/guitarist and main songwriter Tim Rogers. They were the first Australian band to have three albums successively debut at #1 on the ARIA Charts, and are renowned for their live performances.-History:Tim Rogers formed the first...

, Wendy Matthews

Wendy Matthews

Wendy Joan Matthews is an Australian adult alternative pop singer originally from Canada who has been a member of Models and Absent Friends and is a solo artist...

, The Hummingbirds

The Hummingbirds

The Hummingbirds were an indie pop or jangle pop band from Sydney, Australia formed in 1986 from Bug Eyed Monsters. They were one of the most highly touted outfits to emerge from Sydney's inner-city scene during the late 1980s and were an early signing to the rooArt label. The Hummingbirds' single...

, The Trilobites and Amanda Brown

Amanda Brown (musician)

Amanda Gabrielle Brown is an Australian composer, classically trained musician, singer and songwriter, renowned for her role as the violinist of the band The Go-Betweens and more recently a session musician and soundtrack composer....

. Other bands which made early or first releases on the rooArt label included Hipslingers, The Last Metro, The Lab

The Lab (band)

The Lab were an Australian Sydney-based electronic music band consisting of keyboardist Paul Mac, vocalist Yolanda Podolski and vocalist and bassist Warwick Factor. An early line-up included a second bass player. They formed in the late 1980s and initially recorded on the rooArt label...

, The Fauves

The Fauves

The Fauves are an Australian rock band. Their album Future Spa was nominated for Best Alternative Album in the 1997 ARIA awards but lost to Spiderbait's Ivy and the Big Apples....

 and Custard

Custard (band)

-Overview:The band were originally known as Custard Gun and featured David McCormack on vocals and guitar, Paul Medew on bass, James Straker on guitar and Shane Brunn on drums. After a few shows and line up changes Custard Gun morphed into Custard...

. RooArt released a series of three compilation albums of new or then-unsigned acts, called Youngblood. A number of acts released on the compilations went on to record their own albums, including Tall Tales and True, The Trilobites and Martha's Vineyard.

Sydney band Crash Politics were the first band signed to RooArt, which released their debut album Mothers' Intentions. The label's second signing was the Hummingbirds, who had released four singles on their previous label Phantom Records

Phantom Records

Phantom Records was an Australian independent record label established by Dare Jennings Phantom Records was an Australian independent record label established by Dare Jennings Phantom Records was an Australian independent record label established by Dare Jennings (founder of Mambo (Clothing) and...

, with their debut LP loveBUZZ being one of the first hit albums for rooArt.

Country artist Shanley Del (of the trio Saunders, Kane and Del) had some releases on RooArt, as did country band The Wheel.

The label had a sub-branch called Ra Records, whose focus was on alternative rock; You Am I

You Am I

You Am I are an Australian alternative rock band, fronted by vocalist/guitarist and main songwriter Tim Rogers. They were the first Australian band to have three albums successively debut at #1 on the ARIA Charts, and are renowned for their live performances.-History:Tim Rogers formed the first...

, Augie March

Augie March

Augie March are an Australian indie/pop rock band. Formed in 1996 in Shepparton, Victoria, the band currently consists of vocalist and rhythm guitarist Glenn Richards, lead guitarist Adam Donovan, bassist Edmondo Ammendola, drummer David Williams, and keyboardist Kiernan Box...

, The Mark Of Cain

The Mark of Cain

The Mark of Cain is a hard rock/alternative metal band from Adelaide, South Australia. Their style has been likened to that of Helmet and Rollins Band, yet this band predates both of those groups and was influenced by the early work of Joy Division and US hardcore...

 and Buffalo Tom

Buffalo Tom

Buffalo Tom is an alternative rock band from Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1986. Its principal members are guitarist Bill Janovitz, bassist Chris Colbourn, and drummer Tom Maginnis. The band's name is derived from the band Buffalo Springfield and the first name of the drummer.-Career:Dinosaur Jr...

 were signed to this. It also had a section called RooArt Jazz, which released an album by Free Spirits in 1990

1990 in music

This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1990.-Events:*January 21 – MTV's Unplugged premieres on cable television with British band Squeeze...

.

RooArt releases were distributed PolyGram

PolyGram

PolyGram was the name of the major label recording company started by Philips from as a holding company for its music interests in 1945. In 1999 it was sold to Seagram and merged into Universal Music Group.-Hollandsche Decca Distributie , 1929-1950:...

 until 1991, then by Warner Music Australia, until 1995 when the label switched to the independent Shock Records

Shock Records

Shock Records is Australia's largest independent record label. It helps distribute records from overseas records labels such as Epitaph Records, and also for small record labels designed specifically for that band such as Cement Records...

 label to manage its marketing and distribution. In October 1996, on the eve of You Am I's triumph at the ARIA Awards, it was announced that BMG Australia

Sony BMG Australia

Sony Music Entertainment Australia is the predominant record label operated by Sony Music Entertainment in Australia.-Current Sony Music Australia Artists:*Adam Harvey*Amy Meredith*Andrew O'Keefe*Altiyan Childs...

 had purchased rooArt for A$

Australian dollar

The Australian dollar is the currency of the Commonwealth of Australia, including Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, and Norfolk Island, as well as the independent Pacific Island states of Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu...

5 million.

RooArt is now defunct. Murphy now runs Petrol Exotic.

High Selling rooArt Artists

• THE SCREAMING JETS (Top 5 single: "Better", 1991; album "All For One", 1991)
• WENDY MATTHEWS (singles: "Token Angels", "The Day You Went Away", "Friday's Child"; albums: "Emigre", 1990 & "Lily", 1992)
• YOU AM I (singles: "Berlin Chair" & "Cathy's Clown"; No.1 album: "Hourly, Daily", 1995)
• THE HUMMINGBIRDS (album: "LoveBUZZ" and single: "Blush", both 1989)
• RATCAT (No.1 single "Don't Go Now", No.1 E.P. "Tingles" and No.1 album "Blind Love", all 1991)
• ABSENT FRIENDS (Top 5 single: "I Don't Want To Be With Nobody But You"; album: "Here's Looking Up Your Address", both 1990)
• TALL TALES & TRUE (single: "Summer Of Love")
• WEDDINGS, PARTIES, ANYTHING (singles: "Father's Day" and "Monday's Experts")
• JAMES REYNE (single: "Red Light Avenue"; album: "The Whiff Of Bedlam", 1994)
• CUSTARD