We Banjo 3 bring upbeat chords to The Kate

OLD SAYBROOK — We Banjo 3, from Galway, Ireland, is bringing its high-energy, toe-tapping music to The Kate on Thursday.

The band of brothers blends traditional Irish music with bluegrass and folk to come up with “Celtgrass.”

For a preview, go to YouTube and check out “The Fox,” involving a walk in the mossy woods, a grungy old door and a jumping underground party, with guest Sharon Shannon on the accordion. Try to sit still as the group, with 15,000 trad musicians, dancers, singers, Scouts, kids and old folks in Galway City, knock out the Steve Earle classic “Galway Girl.”

Or look up “Happiness,” again in Galway City: “Happiness is just around the corner.”

The band’s name prompts the question: Where’d the “3” come from? It’s not the number of strings on a banjo. Nor is it the number in the band; actually, that’s four. It’s two sets of brothers — David and Martin Howley and Enda

and Fergal Scahill — with banjos, guitars, mandolin, fiddle, dobra, viola and a bodhran (an Irish drum.) It began as three, without Fergal, but they needed another player, so they added him, who gets kidded for his red pants. They all sing, with David Howley doing lead vocals.

They’ve got four albums out, and the band says they’re breaking in tunes for a new release on their latest U.S. tour. That kicked off in the Pacific Northwest on Feb. 10 in Washington with a sold-out show (among several) and are driving across the country. Along the way, they’re posting entries on Facebook.

In addition to the tour updates on Facebook, there’s info on two free tickets available for every show that’s not sold out.

From Old Saybrook, they “3” are going up to Maine. The band winds up the trip after 26 stops on March 24-25 in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Tickets are $38-$35 for the 7:30 p.m. show at the Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center (300 Main St.). For information, call 877-503-1286.

Courtesy of DN Design We Banjo 3 will perform at the Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center in Old Saybrook.