IRC and FTP is good if you like waiting to maybe get the file. I prefer emule where you wait and definitely get the file. Torrent is good only if there are lots of seeds. Torrents can dry up and die far too easily in my opinion. Kazaa K++ is good but there are tons of viruses and bogus song files. Soulseek is my preferred option for music.
www.emule-project.net
www.slsknet.org