Music Video: Nanook - Ingerlaliinnaleqaagut

Back when I was still just posting my international music observations on my personal Facebook page, I linked to a couple of interesting hip-hop groups from Greenland.  Despite being pretty rudimentary musically, they did ignite in me an interest in discovering more about the music scene in this often overlooked, scantily populated, island in the Arctic Ocean.

As one would expect from a place that is officially an independent nation within the Kingdom of Denmark, Greenland's music is heavily influenced by Europe.  Geographically, as a part of the North American continent, Greenland's music also displays influence from Canada and the United States.  Culturally, as a nation that is primarily ethnically Inuit, and which officially speaks Greenlandic, songs are typically sung in a language that would confound even the most widely traveled linguists.

All of which brings us to the band Nanook and their song Ingerlaliinnaleqaagut.  The title and lyrics might seem at first totally alien, but the music is instantly accessible.  Originally formed by two brothers, one from Nuuk, Greenland and the other from Copenhagen, Denmark, Nanook blends these influences beautifully in this mellow acoustic tune.