The Ultras, as MCR-T affectionately calls his fans, came prepared for a double dose of debauchery: a prime festival slot at Parc Jean-Drapeau followed by late-night afters at the Société des Arts Technologiques. Packed in shoulder to shoulder around the 360-degree Jardin stage, just a stone’s throw from Calder’s iconic Place de l’Homme statue, dressed in their finest candy-kid rave outfits, Y2K and indie-sleaze looks, the crowd of youngsters was eager for the sesh to start. Behind the CDJs, it was a full-blown Live From Earth family gathering, with fellow members of the collective in attendance to support.
West Berlin born and bred, MCR-T has built his reputation as a rapping, singing, producing, and DJing powerhouse. This unorthodox approach to techno has made him stand out, as he has become fairly known to sing and rap live during his sets. From start to finish, he served non-stop club bangers, with his signature ghetto tech sound – cartoonish samples, cheeky vocals, and a club-ready bounce that had the floor in upheaval. Anthems like My Boo, My Bae, My Baddie and fan-favorite singalongs like My Barn, My Rules had the crowd singing along to every word, while his flip of iconic dance tune Better Off Alone sent the dancefloor into a frenzy. Acting as his own hype man, he worked the mic with charisma, hyping and bantering between shots of liquor, whom he shared with LFE family & ultras alike. At one point, he hopped up onto the speakers to sing along to Up and Down, driving the crowd wild. Billows of smoke poured out from the booth, making him disappear right before breaking into live vocal renditions of his breakout tracks Careless Whisper and off his most recent album Not The Same. He then wrapped up his outdoor set by literally leaping straight into the gabber madness of his collaborative single Buurman uit Berlin, jumping into a mosh pit he himself instigated.
If the Jardin stage set was a candy-colored carnival, SAT’s main room plunged us into something entirely different — dark, sweaty, and relentless. With support from fellow Live From Earth With support from fellow Live From Earth artists MRD and TDJ, MCR-T went back-to-back with MRD, cranking up the BPM into hard trance and industrial basslines, at times punctuated by jungle interludes. MRD jumped on the mic for live vocals, dropping cheeky mashups like Meet Her at the Love Parade blended with Fergie’s My Humps. TDJ added her touch to the performance with angelic vocals. Between the pounding kicks and playful curveball selections (We Like to Party by Vengaboys & MCR-T rapping over Scatman), the night became a playful blend of nostalgia, improvised collaboration & plain old fun.
By the time the sweat-drenched crowd spilled out of the venue, there was no doubt: MCR-T was the man of the night. Backed by MRD and TDJ, he turned the booth into a family affair, channeling Berlin’s rave energy into a younger Montreal crowd that gave it right back — a set equal parts cheeky, chaotic, and euphoric.
