 3 Beat Records — Electronic/dance MP3 downloads at £1.50 for 192Kbps and £2 for 320Kbps. DRM-free. Several electronic/dance styles represented.  3beatdigital.com Ambient.us — Specializes in ambient music. "Highest quality" VBR MP3 files, DRM-free. Includes artwork. Downloads are full albums, not individual tracks, about $10 per album. Ambient.us/shop
Apple iTunes Music Store — iTMS is the hugely-popular music download store. Unfortunately the music files that you purchase are not MP3s (so they won't work in a majority of players) and they are DRM-restricted (so you are restricted from using them freely). Plus, you must install software to purchase music; you cannot even search or preview music directly from the site. Over 1 million tracks available for purchase at $1 per track. apple.com/itunes/store
Audio Lunchbox — DRM-free 192Kbps MP3 files purchased using a subscription-based points system similar to eMusic. Selection is similar to eMusic but not exactly the same. A variety of genres represented. Flash interface for previewing. Apparently no longer offers Ogg Vorbis format. Pretty good selection including Guidance, OM, and some other major electronic labels. 50 Free MP3s for signing up. AudioLunchbox.com
AudioJelly — The Dance Music Download Store. Large selection of electronic and dance music from labels including OM Records and many other labels. Many different styles represented, from House to DnB to Psy Trance. Flash-based music preview tool lets you sample large snippets (MSIE only). DRM-free MP3 files at £1 for 192Kbps and £1.50 for 320Kbps. AudioJelly.com
BeatPort —  Check it out! Huge selection of up-to-the-minute electronic/dance music downloads. Site unfortunately requires Flash and is written entirely in Flash. Extended Flash-based previews. BeatPort.com
Bleep — Warp Records MP3-download service. The entire back catalog of Warp Records and other labels on the Warp banner like Ninja Tune. Pay-per-track downloads of DRM-free MP3 files, $1.35 per track. Awesome Flash-based preview lets you see track waveform and sample entire track in 30-second sections. WarpRecords.com/bleep
BuyMusic at Buy.com — BuyMusic.com is now part of Buy.com. They offer DRM-restricted WMA tracks at 79 cents per track. If you're looking for current pop hits, you can probably find them here. Now in 128Kbps and 256Kbps versions. BuyMusic.com
Calabash Music — World music downloads at $1 per track. Ojos de Brujo and many other world music artists. Tracks are 75 cents each when bought $15 (20 songs) at a time. Sample tracks for 60 seconds using Windows Media Player. DRM-free MP3s for most tracks, with some DRM-restricted tracks. CalabashMusic.com
City16 — Previously offered "electro, progressive house, acid, jackin', tech, breaks, techno, and house classics." but unfortunately has now closed down.
ClickGroove — Check it out! Specializes in house, nu jazz, nu soul, broken beat, electro, downtempo. DRM-free MP3 files at £0.85 per track for 192Kbps and £1.35 for 320Kbps. Naked Music, OM Records, Ubiquity, and large selection of many other major labels. Nice site navigation but annoyingly lists CDs and Vinyl along with downloads. ClickGroove.com
Conzoom.com — Electronic/dance DRM-free 192Kbps MP3 downloads at €1 per track. Labels include Poker Flat Recordings. Conzoom.com
Dancetracks Digital — Dance and electronic music downloads at $1 per track. DRM-free MP3 files at 256Kbps. Not a huge selection but several releases from key labels including Basic Channel and key artists like Jazzanova. DancetracksDigital.com
DJ Download — DJ Magazine's dance music MP3 download store. DRM-free MP3 files at 192Kbps for £1.50 and 320Kbps for £2. A variety of electronic/dance genres represented. Short descriptions of each track which is great. Low quality 40Kbps 16KHz previews sound terrible but are 2 minutes long. djdownload.com
EDM Digital — Electronic/dance music downloads. DRM-free MP3s for 192Kbps for $1.50, 320Kbps for $2, and lossless FLAC for $3. edmdigital.com
eFolkMusic — Folk music in a variety of sub-genres in DRM-free MP3 files at $1 per track for 128Kbps to 192Kbps. Volume discounts bring price down to 75 cents each. Subscription service gives additional discount and access to more music. MP3 and RealMedia previews. efolkmusic.org/ArtMusic/Downloads.asp
eMusic — Check it out! The grandmama of MP3 sites. eMusic is a subscription-based MP3 download site. Pricing has changed as of Nov 2006, but still the best deal out there at $10/month for 30 tracks or $20/month for 75 tracks. It averages out to be about $0.30 per track. Downloads per month do not roll over, however. You can also purchase more expensive "booster packs" downloads that do not expire. Not a comprehensive selection but more than enough to satisfy you, plenty of releases from major labels like OM Records and Ubiquity and many many others. All styles are represented, from electronic/dance to blues, jazz, reggae, rock/pop, and world music. High-quality (192Kbps and up) VBR MP3s, DRM-free. Unlimited re-downloads, no time limit. Social networking features on the site to find artists you may like. Extensive wishlist features with multiple wishlists with comments. Previews are high quality but short at only 30 seconds. eMusic.com
Epitonic — Free MP3 files from a variety of electronic artists. Not a wide selection, but a few choice gems. Epitonic.com
ESL Music — The online music shop of Eighteenth Street Lounge, the label of Thievery Corporation, Thunderball, and many others. Most tracks are available as DRM-free MP3 files for $1 each. (If it is labelled CD on the site it usually has downloads as well.) Track previews seem to work only in MSIE. ESLMusic.com/shop
Fade Records MP3 Shop — Fade Records electronic/dance MP3 files at 256Kbps. DRM-free. Pricing varies by release, from $1.50 to $5 or so per track. Steep discounts for buying all tracks on a release. RealPlayer previews of entire track. faderecords.com
Finetunes — German site. Doesn't seem to offer an English version. €1.20 per track. Offers DRM-free MP3 and Ogg Vorbis downloads. Has wishlist function. Electronic/dance with rock and other genres as well. finetunes.net
ForYourEars.com — Electronic/dance music downloads. DRM-free 192Kbps MP3 files, moving to alt-preset-extreme VBR files. €1 per track. Limited selection. ForYourEars.com
IMO Download — Electronic/dance music at £1.50 per track for 192Kbps DRM-restricted WMA files. Some tracks have DRM-free 192Kbps MP3 versions. Mostly Drum-n-Bass, Hardcore, and Hard Dance with a few selections from other electronic/dance genres. Quantity discounts bring the price down to £1.35 per track. imodownload.com
Karma Download — As of Sep 2006 site is down. Used to offer electronic/dance in a variety of sub-genres, plus indie, rock, alternative, and urban DRM-free MP3 files for $1 a track, $10 per album. Bitrate is 192Kbps to 256Kbps. Flash previews are 30-45 seconds and have a volume control which is very nice, but you can't fast forward. Good selection of back catalogs of some labels. OM Records, Ram Records, many others. KarmaDownload.com
kompakt-mp3.net — Poorly-designed site annoyingly locks out Opera browsers for no reason. Tracks are €1.30. DRM-free electronic/dance MP3 files at 320Kbps. kompakt-mp3.net
Lyme.fm — Formerly OP Dance. Electronic/dance music, mostly house with a few other genres. DRM-free 192Kbps MP3 files at £0.60 to £1.50 per track. Artists include SWAG, Atjazz. Brilliant and absolutely perfect previews: M3U playlists pointing to 192Kbps MP3s, 3 segments per track, 45 seconds per segment! Discounts when you buy full EPs/LPs, and discounts when you pre-purchase credits of £5 or more, up to 10% with purchase of £50. Re-download tracks for 10 days or 3 attempts. Site is unfortunately kind of slow and hard to navigate. lyme.fm
| Magnatune — Claiming that "We are not evil," Magnatune offers pay-per-track music downloads from (mainly) unsigned artists. Easy music licensing for other purposes as well. Download in MP3 or WAV formats. You can even choose how much you want to pay for an album! magnatune.com
MP3 To Burn — Check it out! Mostly House and UK Garage, with various sub-categories of each as well (e.g. Speed Garage, Funky House, Deep House, etc) Some Breakbeat, R&B. £1 per track for 192Kbps DRM-Free MP3 files. Extended length MP3 previews, up to 3-6 minutes per track! Each track has its own description which is fantastic. mp3toburn.com
MP3Tunes.com — DRM-free MP3 files available for download for 88 cents per track. High-quality VBR files. Not so many well-known artists, but supposedly 300,000+ tracks. MP3Tunes.com
Mperia — DRM-free MP3 files. 70% of the purchase price goes to the artist. Requires a BitPass account to purchase music. Approximately $1 per track. Mperia.com
MSN Music — Microsoft's music-download offering. $1 per track, DRM-restricted WMA files. Decent selection of mainstream electronic and dance. Also offers a limited selection of movies and TV downloads and streaming music. music.msn.com
Mudhut — A small selection of electronic artists and labels, notably some tracks by Tech Itch and Acid Jazz (the label). DRM-free MP3s for £1 each. mudhut.co.uk
Musica360.com — A music download site focusing on Latin and Spanish music. 192 kbps DRM-free MP3 files for $1 per track. Flash previews with flashy embedded music player. Musica360.com
Napster 2.0 — The new Napster offers per-track DRM-restricted 128Kbps WMA music downloads, but also offers a subscription-based unlimited download service. When you end your subscription, the files you download will no longer play. With Napster To Go you can transfer the downloaded DRM-protected files to obscure MP3 players (not iPod). Wide selection of 2 million tracks including mainstream labels. Napster.com
Payloadz — Site users upload the content to sell and set their own price. Content is not just music and audio but also video, ebooks, software, and digital documents and files in general. User-created and uploaded music files in a wide variety of formats and prices. payloadz.com
PlayLouder Shop — Download 192-320Kbps VBR MP3 files (encoded with LAME at alt-preset-extreme). Tracks are £1 each or £8 for the entire album. Some tracks available only with album purchase. Unfortunately some tracks are not available for download by people in the USA. PlayLouderShop.com
PureTracks.com — DRM-restricted WMA downloads at $1 (and up) per track. Mostly pop but also a selection of mainstream electronic and dance. PureTracks.com
Rhapsody — Stream 25 free tracks a month with a free account, or subscribe for $10/month for unlimited music streaming of over 2 million tracks, including mainstream pop. Download DRM-protected tracks for about $1 per track. Rhapsody.com
royalty-free.tv — Royalty-free music tracks for use in the soundtrack of your video project or commercial. Prices are around $30 for a full-length track and about $22.50 for a 30-second version. Search by dozens of different moods (e.g. Aggressive, Bouncy, Dramatic, etc.), or music genre, mood, instrument, or tempo. royalty-free.tv
Rule Radio — 300,000+ tracks by unsigned artists. A variety of genres represented. $1 per track DRM-free MP3 files at 128K and up. Also offers free streaming music. RuleRadio.com
Sirius Satellite Radio — The official site for Sirius Satellite Radio. Shop for radios or subscribe here, or access your account if you are already a subscriber. Now offers streaming over the web for $12.95 per month, without a radio. sirius.com
Sounds Online — Does not offer full downloadable music tracks, but rather downloadable royalty-free music loops and samples as well as a huge collection of commercial royalty-free sample and loop CDs, synthesizer instruments, and sound effects. SoundsOnline.com
Stompy — Check it out! Specializes in House Music, and it shows. Very impressive site with Swag, OM, and a load of house music labels. Tracks are meticulously categorized and can be searched with a tag-like system! (e.g. deep, disco, latin, vocal, etc) Singles for $1.50 per track for 192 Kbps MP3 files or $2 for WAV audio. Full hour-long DJ mixes for $10. Simple but very effective 60 second Flash previews. Definitely check this one out if you like house music. stompy.com
Streamwaves — Streaming music subscription service. $8 per month if you subscribe for 12 months, or $10 per month if you subscribe month-to-month. 450,000+ tracks. Download for $1 per track. Free 3-day trial. Seems to be mostly mainstream/pop/pop classics. Streamwaves.com
Streets Online — DRM-restricted albums for £7 and single tracks for £1. Variety of mainstream genres. UK site. WMA files at 192Kbps. Some mainstream dance but mostly pop. streetsonline.co.uk
Strictly Digital — Music download site started by DnB producer Nookie, offering DRM-free 192Kbps and 320Kbps MP3 files at £1-£2 per track. High-quality selection from Drum-n-Bass artists like Calibre, Carlito, and Blame. Specializing in Drum-n-Bass, Downtempo/Breaks, and Old Skool Hardcore. Strictly-Digital.com
Track It Down — Electronic/dance music at £1.50 per track. Good selection of Drum-n-Bass, House, and other genres. DRM-free MP3 files, some encoded at 192Kbps and some at 320Kbps. TrackItDown.net
Trax2Burn — Electronic/dance music at £1.49 for DRM-free MP3 files at 320Kbps. Extended 2-minute Flash-based previews. Site user experience much improved from previous versions. trax2burn.com
Traxsource — Check it out! "The future of house." Extensive collection of up-to-the-minute house and dance MP3 downloads. DRM-free MP3 files at $1.50 per track for 192Kbps and $2 per track at 320Kbps, plus discounts for buying all tracks on a specific release. Previews are 45 seconds long and download quickly. Some brand-new promos are priced higher, at up to $4. Traxsource.com
TuneTribe — Electronic, dance, hip-hop, R&B, soul, latin, reggae, pop, and rock downloads. Track pricing varies but appears to be about £0.80 and up for DRM-free 192Kbps MP3 files. Artists set the price for their music. Apparently all music on the site is exclusive? Site is still in beta. Some tracks do not have music previews. TuneTribe.com
Virgin Digital — Subscription service for $8 per month or music downloads for $1 per track. Over 1 million tracks available. Subscription service is unlimited downloads that work as long as you keep paying. WMA Version 9 files at a whopping 128Kbps. Like iTMS, requires custom software to be installed to access the store. USA only. Windows only. Free 14-day trial. VirginDigital.com
Wal-Mart Music Downloads — I'm sure you can't wait to buy your music downloads from Wal-Mart, so I've included this link. Tracks are 88 cents each. DRM-restricted 128 Kbps WMA files that won't play in your iPod. Huge catalog of current pop hits and many other genres. musicdownloads.walmart.com
Wippit — Wippit offers unlimited downloads in DRM-restricted WMA and DRM-free MP3 for about $90 a year (1 year minimum subscription). Over 200 labels, including Universal, BMG, Sony and EMI. A modest selection of electronic and dance compilations, but mostly pop and other genres. Also offers individual downloads at $0.50 - $1.29 per track for some tracks. Other tracks are available to subscribers only. Has a "constantly changing" selection of 60,000+ tracks. wippit.com
Womb Music — Electronic/dance/urban music at $1 per track. Many major artists including Kaskade, Mark Farina. MP3 and WMA files. Site had major problems when I tried it. WombMusic.com
XCESS — Not really songs for download, but rather royalty-free instrumental music clips for your TV or advertising production. xcessmusic.com
XpressBeats — Current electronic/dance DJ promos for £1 per track or £2 and £3 for popular charts. Flash-based previews. Variety of sub-genres including funky house, broken beat, nu jazz, breaks, progressive, hip hop, leftfield. XpressBeats.com
YoShop — Loads of Yoshitoshi downloads at $1 per track, DRM-free 192Kbps MP3s. Electronic, mostly house. YoShop.com
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