Phases and Stages

The Datsuns

(V2) Since it takes exactly one song for frontman Dolf D. Datsun to go off about "hazy days that blow my mind," The Datsuns may best be appreciated by people who remember actual Datsuns, turbo-charged penis extensions (i.e. sports cars) for alpha males on a budget. But then, anyone confessing a fondness for Trans Ams, El Caminos, or Firebirds of any vintage will probably love these New Zealanders just as much. Or hell, anyone who ever played air guitar in a convenience store parking lot. Doing their best to pretend anything after 1973 never happened, the Kiwi quartet rocks with the single-minded purpose of men who only came to do two things, kick ass and drink beer, and are fast depleting the keg. After the opening onslaught of "Sittin' Pretty," "MF From Hell," and "Lady," "Harmonic Generator" is a coquettishly diverting dose of glam, and "What Would I Know," a gonzo Southern-hemisphere twist on "Tush." The great thing about ZZ Top, Thin Lizzy, and their Seventies brethren wasn't originality or ingenuity, it was their oath to not let up until each and every one of their fans had been rocked from tow-hairs to toenails. The Datsuns' second half is simply one redlining romp after another, Christian Datsun's crackling guitar leads adding extra mojo until the final meltdown of "Freeze Sucker." If the Datsuns' retro sound is currently getting them Strokes/Stripes levels of hype, their blow-the-doors-off passion should allow them to leave their peers in the dust. (La Zona Rosa, Friday, March 14, midnight)