Bryan Skinner has a way of making everything he tackles seem like a fun and worthwhile endeavour. With extensive experience in soccer, politics, filmmaking and music, the husband and father of two says the secret to maximizing creative outlets at your disposal is having them mirror your approach in life.
For Skinner, that means getting in on the ground floor of whatever stirs your passion. “It’s awesome to be part of the start of something, and then sit back and watch it grow,” he said.
Skinner, 42, has plenty of experience in that regard.
His love of politics saw him become a member of Victoria’s downtown advisory committee and run in the 2002 civic election; his passion for soccer resulted in Skinner co-founding Fernwood United of the Vancouver Island Soccer League; and his fondness for Celtic music saw his band, Shillelagh, make street busking an art form while playing to large crowds in front of Munro’s Books on Government Street.
Quite simply, Skinner practises what he preaches. “I’m pretty proud of what I’ve done,” he said of his accomplishments.
He is also credited with furthering the CineVic Society of Independent Filmmakers, of which he’s the executive director. The Vancouver Film School graduate is a filmmaker himself, having directed the 2008 burlesque mockumentary Tumbling After among other films.
He will take a break from his film-industry duties to perform a rare gig Saturday at Hermann’s Jazz Club, alongside guitarist Adam Dobres and fiddler Kiérah. Gigs are more fun these days for the Richmond native, who is more disciplined today than he was back in his teens, especially when it comes to playing the bodhrán, an Irish drum.
“I love that instrument,” he said. “I find it so expressive. When I need to work something out, I get on that thing and play it.”
Shillelagh was a very popular Celtic act during the mid-’90s, and once appeared on Good Morning America. What are your thoughts on that point in your life?
Looking back over the things I’ve done, I’m still very proud of our first album, Lemonade, and how we were able to do it with the resources we had. At the beginning, it was always about the friendship, about bringing our friends together. That was my life, and those guys are my brothers. They will always be my brothers.
Speaking of brothers, I’m delighted to hear that you cite as an influence the Clancy Brothers, one of the great Irish groups in history.
The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem Live at Carnegie Hall, those amazing harmonies and togetherness ... to this day, I still love that album.
Was it their music or your Irish-Scottish heritage that had the most impact on your Celtic music?
If anything, it was my dad singing songs in the car that most impacted my musical direction.
Now that you are playing music with local upstarts like Crikey, and Quinn and Qristina Bachand, who are today what you were a decade-and-a-half ago, does it feel strange?
Now that it’s not about business, it’s a lot more about music for me. I have concentrated lately on learning how to play the bodhrán correctly. I never had the opportunity when I was playing Shillelagh to do it right, so to speak. I was worried about all the other stuff too much.
Stuff like trying to keep your band on the road in the U.S. with a tour bus that barely ran, if I remember correctly.
That van, which lasted eight months, had been converted to propane by a previous owner, who forgot to switch the engine over. We had to drive it at night, on the side of the highway, because it went so slow. By the time we got to Austin, Tex., we discovered that of the 12 pistons, only two were working.
Those experiences must have made your days in politics seem like a breeze. Or is that vice versa?
To be honest, I have always been a political person. In my youth, I was much more radical than I am now. But the things that motivated me — social justice, environmental justice — still do to this day.
Bryan Skinner is performing Saturday at Hermann’s Jazz Club with Adam Dobres and Kiérah. Tickets cost $20.
