Laiksne specializes in the music of eastern Latvia, and all of the songs on Kyukova dzagyuze (The Cuckoo Called) are sung in the Latgallian dialect. None of the singers is a native speaker of the dialect, but they do a good job. They have employed linguistic consultants, as well as specialists in traditional singing and music, and the result is a very professional recording.

Laiksne’s style of singing is not "rough." It is not the almost-shouting style of singing that some people associate with songs in dialect. The five young women (Lauma Garkalne, Dina Kalniņa, Dace Prūse, Baiba Suško and Vineta Romāne) are all very strong singers with rich, beautiful voices. If you happen to have heard Bolta eimu, the third album in UPE’s Latvian Folk Music Collection featuring the music of Biruta Ozoliņa, then you will understand when I say that Kyukova dzagyuze sounds much like Biruta Ozoliņa times five—and turned up a notch or two in volume and in the variety of instruments.

The recording begins with "Zynu, zynu brūļu sātu," a dreamy song that does not mention the namesake of the album, the cuckoo, but speaks nonetheless about the heartache a grown daughter has for her childhood home.

The album is built around the theme of the cuckoo, a bird that is associated with sorrow, heartache and ill fortune in Latvian—and especially Latgallian—folklore. The cuckoo motif shows up in funeral songs, but also in many wedding songs, because marriage was thought of as a type of death (the woman left a relatively carefree life with her family and was "reborn" into a harsher life as a young wife in her husband’s home). Kyukova dzagyuze focuses on these wedding songs referring to the cuckoo. They are a very appropriate theme for a group of young women, and Laiksne has selected the songs and arranged them very well.

The calmer, slower songs—such as "Kyukova dzagyuze," "Kū es beju sarībuse," "Tymsā dzymu, tymsā augu," and "Kyukoj ōra dzagyuzeite"—all tend to have that dreamy feel to them. Considering the usually heavy emotion in these songs, some sound surprisingly light. "Vanadzenis tupēja" is least like the rest, reminding me of the Lithaunian "sutartine" singing style. Every time I listen to the compact disc I seem to pick out a new favorite song: "Mani mōte radeja," "Palākais vanadzeni," "Tōli mani tēvs atdeve"…

Laiksne is usually considered a "post folklore" group, but they’re not rocky, plugged in or too far out there. In fact, despite the careful arrangements, I would consider their music quite traditional. The accompaniments are heavy on the kokle, the ancient Baltic stringed instrument, but Laiksne also play violin, whistles, bass, drum and bagpipe. A cool switch from major to minor key in "Tev mōseņ zeile vēsti nese" caught my ear as something unusual, but otherwise the harmonies and arrangements do not travel far from the Latvian singing tradition.

For the most part the Kyukova dzagyuze songs are not well-known, but they definitely grow on you and provide for good and beautiful listening.

After enjoying Tumsa’s 2000 release, Katram savu Atlantīdu, I picked up their 1997 debut, Putni. I also liked that album, which was far more "hard rock" than Atlantīdu. In terms of musicianship and songwriting, Tumsa had considerably evolved between the two albums. With Nesaprasto cilvēku zemē, it has became apparent that Tumsa is slowly perfecting their craft, making this the best and most consistent release of their career.

The core of the group has always been Mārtiņš Freimanis, who not only provides vocals and plays the acoustic guitar, but is the principal songwriter as well. Rounding out the band are Haralds Drekslers on rhythm and solo guitar, Jānis Daugalis on bass guitar, Kaspars Boroduško on drums and Einārs Kokins on sound. Joining them on this album is Aigars Šmits on keyboards.

Tumsa are first and foremost a rock band, and one of the better examples of that is the opening track "Tā nav lijis," with its catchy and sing-a-long chorus. This song also takes advantage of the presence of the new keyboardist, with the piano providing the hummable main melody.

In a more curious example of their evolution is the song "Tu neesi tāda." The drum beat reminds me of quite a few disco songs, though the song itself is very effective, but perhaps a bit out of place on the album.

Another song that deviates from the regular Tumsa sound is "Lai būtu tā," which sounds like it is from the early days of rock (although with a modernized sound). It reminds me a bit of the song "The Lion Sleeps Tonight," what with its constantly repeating backing vocals. Though it is a deviation from their regular style, this song is also very likable, since it has such a light touch, compared to some of the more serious and heavy songs on the album.

The lyrics on the album are also expansive in their subject matter. One of the more “disturbing” songs on the album is "Šupuldziesma slepkavam," which, as its title suggest, is a rather dark song—a lullaby for a murderer. Freimanis’ lyrics include the line "Guli mans asiņainais draugs" (Sleep my bloody friend).

However, many of the lyrics on the album do go over my head. Sometimes I’m not really quite sure what Freimanis is trying to say in a song, but that did not take away from my enjoyment of the album

My favorite song on the album is probably "Arī man ir sirds." With its great beat and driving rhythm, I think this is destined to be one of the all-time Tumsa classics. I would imagine it would be a hit in concert as well, with its oft-repeated phrase "Ša la la."

One criticism of the album would be that even though Tumsa have nearly perfected their songwriting craft, many of the songs wind up sounding very similar. One might ask, "Why mess with a winning formula?" However, Tumsa seem to be aware of this, judging by some of the afortementioned songs that try to break out of their regular mold.

The most apparent weakness of the Katram savu Atlantīdu was that it had a few too many songs in English (four in total). Perhaps wisely they decided to record every song on this album in Latvian.

Nesaprasto cilvēku zemē is a very solid and highly enjoyable rock record. But I am of the belief that Tumsa have not yet made a truly great album. These guys have incredible talent and I think they have a truly great album in them. In the meantime, Nesaprasto cilvēku zemē should delight all rock fans and help Tumsa reach an even broader audience, something these guys have worked hard to do and of which they are fully deserving.