Fifteen years in We Banjo 3 ended with one honest admission: David Howley told his brother Martin, “I miss playing together.” The four-piece ensemble they built around that impulse plays Thursday, Oct. 15 at Caffe Lena in Saratoga Springs.
About the Show
David and Martin Howley are Galway-born siblings who co-founded We Banjo 3, the Irish folk group that reached Billboard World No. 1 status. The brothers began performing together around age nine (their father set up Friday night gigs) and spent over a decade with We Banjo 3 before stepping back to start this new project. An earlier Howley date at CelticMKE in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin sold out.
Martin is a seven-time All-Ireland champion on banjo and became the first Irish banjoist to perform at the Grand Ole Opry; he also plays mandolin. David handles lead vocals and guitar; he left engineering school to pursue music and has been touring since age 18. The band’s own materials describe him as possessing “soulful vocals and evocative storytelling.” Completing the lineup: Kiana June on fiddle and vocals, a Gaelic Storm member who has recorded four Billboard No. 1 albums with the band and appeared in the Broadway production Come From Away, and Caitlin Leahy on percussion, flute, and vocals, a multi-instrumentalist from the Leahy’s Luck family.
Their 11-track debut ranges across Irish tradition, Americana, and bluegrass. The band describes the music as “built on connection — the pulse of family, the spark of shared history, and the joy of collaboration.” The new chapter, in their own framing: “deeper, braver, and bursting with soul.”
Venue & Logistics
Caffe Lena’s 110-seat listening room on Phila Street is the right size for this music. You’re close enough to catch every ornament in Martin’s banjo lines and the full texture of the four-part harmonies, in the kind of room where the sound does what it’s designed to do. The folk club sits in downtown Saratoga Springs, part of the capital region and an easy drive from Albany or the Adirondack corridor. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. — a room this size fills up.
Tickets
General admission is $45.55, inclusive of fees. Members pay $41.21; child/student tickets are $22.77. The show also streams live via Caffe Lena TV for $5, with 100% of streaming proceeds going directly to the artists. Caffe Lena does not permit ticket reselling above face value. Buy tickets