The Datsuns are a rock band from Cambridge, New Zealand. In 1997, while still at school, Dolf de Borst (vocals, bass), Phil Buscke (guitar), and Matt Osment (drums) formed a band under the name Trinket. Christian Livingstone joined the band in 1997 as a second guitarist. They entered and won the 1999 89FM Battle of the Bands competition; by 2000 the band had renamed themselves 'The Datsuns'. In August 2000 they released their first single, "Super Gyration!" on 7 inch vinyl only. In July 2002, after featuring several times on John Peel's programme on the UK's BBC Radio 1 and being hailed as "the future of rock" by the British music press, the band signed with the V2 record label. Their self-titled debut album made a strong impression in the UK, as well as in Australia and New Zealand. They played Ozzfest in 2003 on the mainstage along side the likes of Ozzy Osbourne, Marilyn Manson, Korn and Disturbed. They played the main stage of the 2004 Big Day Out festival and opened for Metallica in their Australian tour in the same year. Their second album, Outta Sight, Outta Mind, was produced by Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones. However it did not receive the same praise as the first, critics giving it only a lukewarm response. In October 2006, the Datsuns came back with Smoke & Mirrors, heralded as a return to form in Australia and New Zealand. However it was largely ignored by music press overseas. After the release of the third album, drummer Matt Osment was replaced by Ben Cole.
The Datsuns went on a New Zealand tour with Shihad during the Christmas/New Year's period 2006/07.
The band recently completed a tour of Europe to promote Smoke & Mirrors. Although playing mostly locations the band had not previously visited, The Datsuns still managed to sell out the majority of the European dates.
The Datsuns have just finished recording their fourth album in Europe, and it is due to be released in April 2008. The band will be doing tour of New Zealand, Australia, America and Europe to promote the new record, starting at the end of February. - Wikipedia
