The Jerry Cans - InuusiqLife
Nunavut is one of the iciest, arctic most remote places on earth. It's the largest, northernmost, newest and least populous territory in Canada.
The local lifestyle, firmly fixed in Inuit traditions and ways of life, rely on remote grocery runs and imports from nearby cities. Among the various prohibition laws, wandering youth and daily struggle to preserve their native culture, one little folk band from Iqaluit, Nunavut's largest city, is making a whole lot of racket.
The Jerry Cans are described as part folk, part country, part reggae and part Celtic, with a unique Inuit point of difference – duet throat singing. It's little surprise then that a band this diverse are en route to New Zealand shores to perform at the WOMAD festival in March 2016.
Most of The Jerry Cans' music is written and sung entirely in Inuktitut. Their uniquely different sound is executed with one goal in mind, to get the locals up on their feet and dancing.
"It's an interesting history, it's a combination of square dancing and folk dancing," explains Nancy Mike, the band's resident throat singer.
The Jerry Cans
"When the Scottish whalers came in the early 1900's, they brought with them their own traditions," she says.
Throat singing, a sound unbeknown to your average folk listener, boasts a unique raspy quality that adds a new dimension to their quintessentially folk sound.
"Traditionally, we'd use throat singing to put the babies to sleep. We carry our babies on our back, as you breathe in and out, the vibrations would act to soothe the babies. Two women would sing together. The dual in and out rhythm of the women's breath would help relax the babies," she says.
Integrating a traditional lullaby into their sound is only the tip of the iceberg for The Jerry Cans, who sing in their mother tongue throughout most of their albums. "For me, Inuktitut is my mother tongue," says Mike. "I find that writing and singing in Inuktitut, it's much easier for me to express myself, to express what we're trying to say – the stories we're telling."
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