The Brooklyn-based groove group transformed the Sinclair into a boundless fun(k)house.
Walking into the Middle East on October 27 for the Bungalow Collect show was like time-travelling back to the 1970s… but with a bit of a twist. Bungalow Collect is a pioneer of a genre they call disco rap, self-described as “blend[ing] infectious grooves, live instrumentation, and meaningful lyricism.” The Brooklyn-based group is composed of four people: Zay Suav, Marcus Isiah, Apollo J, and Rshad. When asked the signature Sound of Boston question of how they would describe their music without using genre labels—a bit stressful since they specifically use genres to describe themselves—Suav responded, “There’s no stress in disco. It’s fun, it’s exhilarating, it’s for the people, it’s for everybody.”
The venue for the night was packed with people dancing—not just swaying to the beat, but showing off their footwork. WrldfamousKD was in his own world, DJ-ing on stage and doing the hustle while spinning. The floor opened into a dance circle before Bungalow Collect even stepped on stage. A woman in a shiny red dress entered the circle; it was clear from the way she moved that this wasn’t her first disco.
The supporting band (by the name of Loose Change) trickled on stage, each in a matching funky shirt and Afro wig. As they opened the show, the members of Bungalow Collect ran through the crowd—bright blurs approaching the stage in different matching funky shirts and Afro wigs. As an introduction to the second song of the night, “Keep it Honest,” they asked the crowd to reveal some honest truths. The woman in the red dress spoke with her chest as she said, “Always prioritize your truth cuz men ain’t s**t,” to which one of the members mumbled, “Ain’t that the truth.” When the song ended, they launched into a skit and confessed that they needed to be honest, too. At that point, Bungalow Collect and Loose Change removed their Afros and their 70s-style shirts, revealing different matching shirts emblazoned with “What the Funk?”
Bungalow Collect also engaged in a multitude of skits and bits throughout the night that could have come across as tacky, but instead proved engaging, entertaining, and charming. They printed out a TikTok comment to introduce their song “Dancing Shoes”; they threw a beach ball into the crowd; they blasted bubble machines; they “drove in” a bright orange cardboard car; and they even mimed a zip line as they walked across stage. They choreographed dance moves for most of their choruses, some of which they directed the crowd to join in on: two-step to the left… two-step to the right… get down low… jump back up…
The best skit of the night, however, was their introduction to “Loaf.” The collective announced to the crowd that they had a gift for us and pulled out… a loaf of Farmhouse Hearty White Bread. But this loaf represented neither money, nor actual bread. The loaf represented growth, progress, and putting one foot in front of the other. As independent artists, Bungalow Collect model this self-determination and empowerment: They make all their own cover art, they design their own merch, and they write and produce their own music.
Halfway through the show, they took a pause to give a little history of disco music—where it came from and how it evolved into house. From there, each member of the group delivered an introductory verse about where they came from and how they got to where they are today; they have put in years of hard work to hone their craft and they’re still growing. From humble beginnings to nationwide tours, Bungalow Collect has endeavored to bring “joy, dancing, and human connection back to the forefront of music.”
The human connection was apparent between Bungalow Collect and the crowd, forming a synchronous space with no boundary to separate the two. Band members handed out sunglasses to people in the crowd and invited them to “act up” on stage. Conversely, they jumped into the middle of the crowd for the dance break (and were absolutely breaking it down). At their previous show in Brooklyn, Bungalow Collect ranked the crowd’s energy an 8.4. When they asked the crowd what they thought their energy was, someone in the back shouted, “WE AT AN 8.5!” The collective checked in repeatedly, ranking the crowd higher and higher to keep the energy up, despite the fact that it was indeed a Tuesday night in Boston.
For the penultimate song of the night, “How I Love,” Bungalow Collect invited everyone to join them on stage. The entire club showed off their best moves to the infectious groove; Loose Change held it down with their electric beats and funky bass lines, while Bungalow Collect rapped with immense joy and optimism. The crowd was having fun because Bungalow Collect was having fun. As they said when they first stepped on stage, “It’s about movement and groovement and potentially losing a shoe or two.” With music that can lift anyone’s mood, Bungalow Collect put on a show that had everyone dancing their heart out, leaving Boston forever a part of the Bungalow Collect family.