The words “We’re all in this together” formed the backdrop to the stage at The Sinclair on Tuesday night. That proved to be the thesis statement for the evening, as Hurray for the Riff Raff kicked off a two-night run at the Cambridge venue.

Hurray for the Riff Raff’s set leaned heavily on cuts from The Navigator, which was released last month. The album truly feels like an instant classic. These songs are heartfelt, profound and contain just the right amount of activist spirit that 2017 needs. Bandleader Alynda Segarra’s music has never strayed away from political messages, but The Navigator is formed around them. Performed live, the songs took on a new life.

Segarra is a Nuyourican, a term that refers to descendants of Puerto Ricans living in New York City. She grew up in the Bronx; a lot of the songs on The Navigator confront that upbringing and the turmoils she, her parents and her ancestors faced. The concept album is written from the point of view of Navita, a fictional character. In an interview with NPR, she described how she came to write this album.

“I think it took me until about this age to really decide that I needed to learn about where I’m from and where I fit in my lineage of people,” she said. “It was a very healing experience.”

“Fourteen Floors,” a piano ballad, was among the most heart wrenching statements of the set, describing growing up 14 floors up, but knowing that it’s really the 13th floor — and how much work it took for her father to make it there. She sings: “Well he said, that it felt like, a million years/ Oh, just to get here.”

“Rican Beach” was another standout song from the set. Segarra sings: “First they stole our language/ Then they stole our names/ Then they stole the things that brought us fame/ And they stole our neighbors/ And they stole our streets/ And they left us to die on Rican Beach.” It also takes on the politicians who “squawk their mouths” about building a wall. Still, she promises that she’ll “keep fighting ’till the end.”

But the pre-encore set closer, and album highlight, “Pa’lante” won the show. The song title translates to “move forward,” and was the name of the newspaper from The Young Lords, a nationalist group out of Puerto Rico. Segarra dedicated the song to immigrants. The song builds to a call to arms of sorts. “To all who lost their pride, I say, ¡Pa’lante!” With each “¡Pa’Lante!” Segarra put her fist in the air, defiant and powerful. The crowd joined in. We’re all in this together.

Joining Hurray for the Riff Raff was Ron Gallo, which is both a band and a person. Gallo’s set was fuzz-soaked and visceral. Gallo’s music is full of humor and confronting the absurdity of the world with irony. His latest record is called Heavy Meta. Perhaps there’s really nothing to say more than just the title.

Gallo and fellow bandmates joined the band for the encore. The ensemble closed out the evening with a rollicking cover of CCR’s “Fortunate Son.”

See pictures from the show below. Hurray for the Riff Raff next stops by the Boston area for the Newport Folk Festival, which was announced at Tuesday’s show by festival director Jay Sweet.