Sites and sounds by KRISTA I have finally decided to join the ranks of the computer-literate and internet-aware. I am now the proud owner of a computer with a modem and I recently opened an e-mail account. Better late then never, right? Anyone with information that they're just itching to share with me can send it to me at secondnature98@hotmail.com (hotmail is free, so I like it). In honour of the fact that I have now joined the 20th century, I have done a little research and compiled a small list of dance music and party-oriented Web sites and pages that I think are worth taking a visit to. Sanj and Sean, two boys right here in Montreal, have put together an online listening booth featuring pre-releases from regional as well as international artists, in all areas of electronic music. You can visit them at www.sugarrush.com and take a listen to some unreleased material from local punters, or check out DJ sets recorded live, like Cari Lekebusch at Sona or Brian Gee at Jaï. Another Montreal site you can hit to keep up on what's up is muzikzone.home.ml.org. If you've got a thing for girl DJs, or if you are a girl DJ, you can find out just how many other girl DJs there are (at least in North America) by looking at the list that West Coast DJ Dazy has compiled. It's called sister DJs, and it's devoted exclusively to the ladies. It's at www.djdazy.com. By far the best-known site in North America for electronic music is San Francisco's Betalounge. It operates largely like an online radio show, providing live videos of many of the artists who visit. You can find West Coasters like Skratch Piklz and Peanut Butter Wolf, as well as artists like Stacey Pullen and many more. They're at www.betalounge.com. Across the ocean, check out Interface UK at www.pirate-radio.co.uk for a little bit of everything and www.ministryofsound.co.uk for the freshest video sets. By far the most definitive techno resource center on the net, though, is www.hyperreal.org. Moving on to more gossip-oriented news, Patrick Dream is no longer playing Sona bar on Saturdays. He says he wants to "develop an international profile in the interest of promoting Bombay Records," and wants to have more freedom to promote other events associated with Harmony. Fair enough. Quebec transplantee Nic B is the replacement of choice. Montreal rave scene mogul DJ Tiga has changed the name of his new label from Marquis recordings to Turbo Recordings. Apparently, Marquis is the name of the classical music division of Virgin records--so to avoid the ominous legal ramifications, Tiga had to choose a new monicker. A CD compilation featuring tracks by Montreal artists is Turbo's next project. Finally, MTV recently aired a "guide to the deeply complex world of drum and bass." I spaced the actual title, but it had DB, owner of NYC store Breakbeat Science, giving a rough historical overview, and other artists like Brian Gee, DJ Dara, Jungle Brothers and (though I'm not sure why) Nigel Richards blabbing on as well. MuchMusic, are you listening?