by LORRAINE CARPENTER

Teachers, parents and people in lab coats agree that seven-year-old children are “vigourous and generally restless, e.g., foot tapping, wiggling, being unable to sit still.” Well, the Elektra festival turns seven this year, and their stacked program of bold art installations, dance, film and electronic music suggests that there’s no energy deficiency in sight. (The downside of being seven is that the child “may occasionally wet or soil him/herself when upset or excited”—but it’s all part of the show, really.)

One of a seven-year-old’s developmental tasks is “to learn to distinguish between reality and fantasy.” This is where Elektra is retarded. The theme of their 2006 edition, which runs from May 9–14, is “AV3d,” an exploration of the third dimension of the audiovisual world, and while that isn’t incredibly fantastic (at least for those with a grasp of physics), many of this year’s Elektra artists are striving to tear reality a new one. (All shows are at Usine C at 9 p.m., for $15 or $12 for students, unless otherwise noted.)

Belgian urban planning collective Lab[au] and France’s res publica dance company present Man in e.Space, wherein spectators can wander around a darkened set haunted by dancers wearing light-reflective strips that seem to elongate their limbs. The dancers’ dizzying movements will be swiftly filmed, remixed and projected on four screens, a live performance and installation in one. On Tuesday, May 9 and Wednesday, May 10.

There’s turbulence ahead in Schwelle I: Bardo by Montreal- and Berlin-based artist Chris Salter. His work is a peek at the possible “physical and emotional shifts that can be experienced at the threshold of death,” like DMT without the chemicals. Three screens on an immense panoramic surface simulate moving, abstract landscapes while tsunamis of sound gush out of an eight-channel surround sound system. On Thursday, May 11, $10 or $7 for students.

Pink Floyd fans, this one’s for you. Listed under “Extreme performances,” Edwin van der Heide’s LSP, Laser Sound Performance invites the audience into a mind-altering 3D environment featuring pulsating sound and lasers projected onto a thin layer of smoke–considering this is a Dutch project, you may want to seek out the source of that smoke. The second part of this package deal is homegrown, Montreal’s own Skoltz_Kolgen. After touring this piece worldwide, the duo will present the final, definitive version of Fluüx/Terminal, their “retinal diptych” on two giant screens. The harmony between the sounds and images evolves into a dialogue and finally into a loud, bitter fight. And they seemed like such a nice couple. On Friday, May 12.

As is the Elektra tradition, Saturday is a happening, starring the festival’s headlining musician. Melodic and mechanical, electronic and acoustic, the minimal, textured music of Kangding Ray (aka France’s David Letellier) is a riveting blend of crackling noise, sampled guitars, sensual rhythms and digital errors. Letellier’s rich mix-and-match approach, as heard on his debut album, Stabil, has its roots in his rock, pop and jazz background. Behind the consoles, and behind Letellier, beautifully rendered, real-time sound-wave art by Japan’s Nibo will be projected on a massive screen. Bonus. On Saturday, May 13.

For the complete program, including info about workshops, conferences and the festival-closing awards event, go to www.elektra7.ca