After being released in Europe at the end of last year, The Datsuns' fourth disc, Head Stunts, was finally released in the US this month. Like The Datsuns' past work, this is another slab of high-energy power-punk.

The disc starts off with a bang as the lead-off track "Human Error" has all of hooks of a perfect radio single. While Head Stunts is predominately composed of anthemic rock rave-ups, there are some dabbling into psychedelic/garage rock on cuts like "Hey! Paranoid People" (which prominently features Christian Livingstone's swampy Hammond organ) and the somber "Eye of the Needle" (which is driven by a pulsing bass-and-drums backbeat).

While this disc isn't significantly from The Datsuns' past work, it feels a bit more mature. The melodies and tempos ebb and flow between the songs (not all of the cuts are guitar-rawk) which makes a number of the songs more memorable. Aside for the guitar-rawk and psychedelic influences mentioned above, there are also elements of glam-rock (" Highschool Hoodlums") and 70's pop ("Cruel Cruel Fate"). The disc ends with a brilliant "Tomorrow Never Knows"-sounding shoegazer "Somebody Better"

Lyrically, this isn't a deep album (i.e. the "Chain Smoking/Shit Talking" chorus of Highschool Hoodlum) but it has some great riffs that should come across even better in the band's live performance. The last few times that The Datsuns have come through NYC, they have put on a wild performance. Here is a video from a recent performance (a cover of The Misfits' "Where Eagles Dare") that shows the live power of the band.



The Datsuns are coming back through the US in July which includes a stop at Mercury Lounge on July 18th. Here are the dates for the US and Canadian leg of the tour:

July 13, 2009, 8:00PM, Café Du Nord, San Francisco, California
July 14, 2009, 8:00PM, Echo, Los Angeles, California
July 17, 2009, 8:00PM, T T The Bears, Boston, Massachusetts
July 18, 2009, 8:00PM, Mercury Lounge, New York
July 19, 2009, 8:00PM, La Sala Rossa, Montreal, Quebec
July 20, 2009, 8:00PM, The Legendary Horseshoe Tavern, Toronto, Ontario
July 21, 2009, 8:00PM, Majestic Cafe, Detroit, Michigan
July 22, 2009, 8:00PM, Empty Bottle, Chicago, Illinois

Links:
The Datsuns' MySpace Profile