MANKATO — Sometimes luck finds you. Steve Twigger knows this well.

   Twigger — a born Englishman who had gone through numerous bands before landing firmly in a Celtic group called Gaelic Storm — was performing often with his band in the mid-1990s at O’Brien’s Irish Pub and Restaurant in Santa Monica, Calif., where bandmate Patrick Murphy was the manager.

One day in 1996, a scout came in looking for a band to perform as the third-class steerage band in James Cameron’s “Titanic.” Gaelic Storm fit the bill, and they got the job — sort of an “American Dream” come true for Twigger and native Irishman Murphy.

Fans will remember the Gaelic Storm appearance from the scene when Jack and Rose (Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet) leave a formal dinner to dance at a lively gathering, accompanied by music, in the lower-level, third-class part of the ship.

Twigger describes the two weeks they spent shooting as an experience of a lifetime.

“We had a fantastic time,” said Twigger, whose band will perform Wednesday at the Verizon Wireless Center. “I think they just saw (us) as having a very natural style, which was perfect for that scene.

“In that whole scene, strangers are coming together and celebrating their new life.”

The members of Gaelic Storm followed suit shortly after in celebrating a new life as a band. “Titanic” gave them the publicity and recognition needed to launch a tour, which hasn’t really stopped since. The band performs their unique blend of traditional Irish, Scottish and original Celtic rock music at more than 125 shows per year.

“(‘Titanic’) got our foot in the door,” Twigger said. “It’s been 13 years, and we’ve moved on. ... We’re putting out our eighth CD this summer, and we’ve written and recorded (over) 100 songs.”

Growing up in England, Twigger listened to a lot of rock music. Led Zeppelin, David Bowie and Queen were among his favorites. After moving to the U.S., he performed in a variety of bands, from pop-alternative to experimental. Disillusioned and ready to give up on music, he met Murphy over a Guinness at O’Brien’s and found just the right musical fit.

“We approached it in a real casual way. We would drink beers and sing some songs,” he said. “This was very lighthearted, and the music kind of came out of the friendships and out of the stories.”

One such story made its way into a song called “The Night I Punched Russell Crowe (a true story involving singer Patrick Murphy).” Back in the day, Crowe used to patron O’Brien’s quite often and, well ...

“Things tend to happen around Russell Crowe,” Twigger said vaguely, “and around Patrick Murphy.”

After various changes over the years, the band lineup now consists of Murphy (accordion, spoons, bodhrán, lead vocals), Twigger (guitar, bouzouki, mandolin, lead vocals), Ryan Lacey (djembe, doumbek, surdo, cajón, vocals, various percussion), Peter Purvis (Highland bagpipes, Uillean pipes, electronic bagpipes, whistle) and Jessie Burns (fiddle, vocals).

Not all the band members have a background in Celtic music, but the sound came together easily, Twigger said.

“We sort of instantly started playing this style — heavy rhythms and a really bright and energetic, lively, upbeat kind of style,” he said.

The energy of the band on stage and off seems to match the music. Band photographs are often done in silly outfits and poses, and a plastic donkey given to the band by a fan has turned into a mascot, getting its picture taken at various places. Darcy the donkey even has his own TV show, a series of YouTube videos on the band’s Web site.

Twigger said, at the Mankato show, people can expect a lot of storytelling to go along with the music.

“We involve the audience in there, and we keep the show lively and have a whole variety of different types of songs,” he said. “It’s certainly an enjoyable couple of hours for us.”