A few months back a local radio station in Atlanta made a switch from Z93 to Dave FM.  The transition brought with it a change in musical venue from old rock to a mix touted as "your favorite CD's on random".  They recently featured some up and coming bands that I was pretty impressed with.  It's easy to get bored with the repetitive mainstream music played on station after station, so I'm always on the lookout for better music.  Here they are:

• Carbon Leaf: INDIAN SUMMER - released in July (stream available at website)

Before they were known as America's most accomplished unsigned band, Virginia's Carbon Leaf was making a high impact buzz on the college circuit. As winners of the Coca-Cola New Music Award in 2002, Carbon Leaf followed up with gracious opening spots for such pop rock titans as: Dave Matthews Band, OAR, John Mayer, Counting Crowes, Guster and David Gray. Their brand of Celtic/bluegrass inspired rock featured such diverse instruments as mandolin, bodhran, banjo, bagpipes, bouzouki, and tin whistles, carrying the playful sound through the better part of five albums and a steady cult following (glidemagazine)

Just try to escape the hook of "Life Less Ordinary"!!

• Jem: FINALLY WOKEN - debut album (stream available at website)

  Jem's debut album, "Finally Woken," on Dave Matthews' AT0 label, is filled with strings, samples, loops and sometimes decorous production, so the effect is often lush, though somewhat repetitive. Onstage, backed by a live band, her sound became more dynamic, bringing out her mixed bag of rhythms, ranging from magnetic dance beats to touches of bubbling trip-hop (hollywoodreporter)

If you're into the sounds of Dido or Sarah McLachlan ... you'll be all over this!

• Psuedopod:
  PSEUDOPOD - self titled debut (stream available at website)

sounding like the love child of Blues Traveler and Dave Matthews Band, Pseudopod brings an eclectic mix of sounds from their own genre to the forefront and takes in styles from other genres.

Pseudopod's debut is the perfect mix of jazz, blues, funk and rock. From the first song to the last, they never lose their style and keep the flow going. The music flows well, never going off beat and never strays too loud or soft. The tempo fits with the style and the lyrics fit the vocals (studentpublications)

All three artists are a welcome oasis of good tunes, beats, and hooks for the simple fact that they can't be found on station after station as I flip through the dial.