British funk legends kick off US tour in style along with openers Bathe
Bathe, of Brooklyn, NY opened the show at 8 PM. The R&B duo performed while some fans in the audience yelled “Bathe boys!” in between songs. Before the end of their 30-minute performance, vocalist Devin Hobdy announced they “would evacuate the stage” for the legends Cymande. Ahead of Bathe leaving the stage, Devin went into the audience to sing for a few moments.
British funk band Cymande took the stage at 9 PM, and kicked off their tour in support of their newest album, Renascence, with the records’ fifth song “Sweeden.” Patrick Patterson of Cymande stated that one of their first shows was in NYC, so they were grateful to be back. The guitarist also shared to the packed room at Irving Plaza, “We’ve come a long way in the cold to see you!” This was the first time the band performed in our city since the release of their 2022 documentary “Getting it Back: The Story of Cymande” and the band treated us to songs both old and new during their concert.
Closing their set was “The Message” from their self titled debut album. The song was famously sampled nearly two decades later for Masta Ace’s 1990 single “Me And The Biz,” with the genre of hip hop giving Cymande a new audience outside of the UK many years after they toured the US for the first time with Al Green. After the end of “The Message,” the band left the stage at 10:15PM, only to return about a minute later to begin their encore with “It’s Magic” from their 1981 album, Arrival.
You can scroll through below for highlights from a stunning night in Brooklyn.
All Photos by Edwina Hay
Cymande
Bathe
