Can't help you with Belfast-y advice, but here in the frozen northern fortress of Aberdeen, I have never used any of those find a band websites. All bands I've been in have been organically grown* by good old fashioned luck, circumstance, talking to people, networking, hearing about opportunities, going for them. I think working behind the bar in a music venue helped - got to meet some of the contributors to the local scene long before I got properly involved.
* I did once use Gumtree to look for a singer, we got one guy who we auditioned but passed on.