National spotlight shines on N.C. indie-rockers

There's something about N.C. indie rock that really tickles the ears.
Take Charlotte bands Elevator Action and the Talk, and veteran Chapel Hill scuzz-rockers Snatches of Pink. All three made the cover of the Oct. 13 issue of CMJ Alert (formerly CMJ New Music Report).
CMJ, short for College Music Journal, has long been the barometer for what gets played on college radio. The magazine puts out CMJ New Music Monthly as well as Alert, a three-times-a-month industry update. It also sponsors the annual CMJ Music Marathon in New York City, which wrapped up Oct. 16. What a time for three N.C. bands to land on the cover of Alert. Most everyone in the business reads the trade magazine, from radio programmers to indie and major-label record executives to music editors. For Chuck Morrison, owner of the Charlotte-based MoRisen Records, Alert's choice of cover boys and girls proves his crazy idea of forming an upstart indie-rock label in the hip-hop era wasn't so crazy after all. (The Talk's CD "It's Like Magic in Reverse," Elevator Action's "It's Just Addiction" and Snatches' "Hyena" all have come out in the past year on MoRisen.) "We're in this for the long run," says Morrison. "There's a lot of talent in this area. Charlotte has a chance to become more of a music town than some people around here might think."

Andrew Webster, host of the "Complex Radio" show on Gaston College station WSGE-FM (91.7), agrees.

We all should be proud.