# The Datsuns return with Moonstruck Man, heavy riffs and desert-rock swagger intact **New Music** — On Your Markus **Published:** 13 November 2026 **Author:** Markus Hamence **Source:** https://onyourmarkus.au/new-music-releases/the-datsuns-moonstruck-man/ The Datsuns have released Moonstruck Man, their eighth studio album, a collection of heavy rock, psychedelia and garage-punk delivered via Hellsquad Records on limited white vinyl, standard black vinyl and CD. The New Zealand band, whose front man Dolf de Borst now based in Sweden, recorded across multiple Swedish studios and today launched a video for single "Glide Like A Ghost" directed by Marc Swadel. --- **THE DATSUNS** **Eighth Studio Album** ***Moonstruck Man***** - Out Today** **New video for "Glide Like A Ghost" also launched** **[Listen/Purchase](https://us.list-manage.com/KhXU16Ot8jM?e=3758bcc5db&c2id=d8fc69bf59de4d11215c8d6988e0877f)** [Watch on YouTube](https://youtu.be/u4bHDZLnUKQ?si=meatJbVy3waqngTN) On their eighth studio album ***Moonstruck Man****,* New Zealand rock 'n' roll veterans **The Datsuns** deliver a riff-fuelled collection of heavy rock, psychedelia and garage-punk. Available now via Hellsquad Records (via MGM) on limited-edition white vinyl, standard black vinyl and CD.  **Listen/Purchase now: **[https://linktr.ee/thedatsuns](https://linktr.ee/thedatsuns) The band also release today the video for '**Glide Like A Ghost**' directed by **Marc Swadel,** marking his third collaboration with The Datsuns. A musical multi-hyphenate whose extensive credits include** The Chemical Brothers, Duran Duran, Peter Gabriel, Nick Cave, Portishead, The Stone Roses, Thurston Moore** and **Crowded House**, Swadel brings a distinctly hands-on, analogue approach to the project. Determined to create something that couldn't be mistaken for AI, Swadel took inspiration from the 16mm stop-motion aesthetic of **Derek Jarman**, crafting a wonderfully atmospheric visual world. Shot across the bridges and backstreets of cold, dark London, the video captures a suitably ghostly landscape where, as Swadel puts it,* "ghosts do roam".* ![Five band members posed on outdoor steps beside a tall wooden tower structure under blue sky.](https://media.onyourmarkus.au/admin/2026/11/1b4b288f-a19e-4779-a601-9b855236c6ee.jpg) With decades of rock 'n' roll behind them, New Zealand's **The Datsuns **continue to make music on their own terms. The first band out of the Southern Hemisphere to make waves on the early 2000s rock explosion (they toured with the **White Stripes, Queens of the Stone Age, Metallica** and others, and **John Paul Jones** from **Led Zeppelin** produced their second album!), their sound remains rooted in big riffs, scorching guitars and an instinct for the unpredictable, with the band bringing the same unrestrained approach to their latest material. ***Moonstruck Man***, their eighth album, draws on the spirit of '70s hard rock, classic heavy metal, garage punk, desert rock and psychedelia. The album is packed with driving rhythms, fuzz-drenched guitars, soaring vocals and the kind of raw energy that has defined the band throughout their career. The album singles release to date include the title track** "Moonstruck Man"** which is a gloriously rambling slice of '70s-inspired rock, loaded with wailing wah, scorching guitars, high-register vocals and flashes of prog and glam-rock eccentricity. ** 'Run From The Sun'**takes things into heavier, more hypnotic territory, combining bluesy basslines and killer fuzz riffs with the expansive, dreamy atmosphere of desert rock.  Meanwhile, **'Glide Like A Ghost'** brings a high-energy collision of classic heavy metal, psychedelic rock and modern stoner rock, driven by raw, heavy guitars, swaggering desert-rock riffs, punchy garage-punk attitude and sharp, witty storytelling. ***Moonstruck Man*** was created across three countries and recorded at several studios throughout Sweden, including** Studio Gröndahl, Gold Halo, Kiki's Castle, Livingstone Boudoirs** and **Riddarborgen**. The Datsuns' current line-up features** Dolf de Borst **on lead vocals and bass, **Christian Livingstone** on guitar and vocals, **Phil Somervell **on guitar, and **Adam Lindmark **of Swedish hard-rock band **Dead Lord** on drums. Following a run of New Zealand and Australian dates earlier in the year, **the DATSUNS **are currently on an extensive run of headline club shows and festival appearances in Europe.  Europe - well Sweden to be exact - being the current home of front Datsun **Dolf**, who for a good while now has simultaneously managed his Datsun duties with those of being **The Hellacopters'** bass man (and before that, with playing bass in head Hellacopter **Nicke Andersson**'s other high energy band, the hard rock power-popping **Imperial State Electric**.)  (And yes, that means we'll see **Dolf **down under again next year, when **The Hellacopters** return to Australia for the first time in 2003.) **The Datsuns**' eighth studio album, ***Moonstruck Man*** is out now via **Hellsquad Records**, with a limited edition white vinyl available alongside standard black vinyl and CD editions. [Watch on YouTube](https://youtu.be/lPuQ89yj_PE?si=2ZuGn4XPw7GqV8ky) [Watch on YouTube](https://youtu.be/MBJvb94JT-E?si=OAD6KRRndJ1MOn-c) **THE DATSUNS** New Album ***Moonstruck Man*** Out now via** Hellsquad Records** Distributed in Australia by **MGM** [mgmreleases.com/moonstruck-man](http://mgmreleases.com/moonstruck-man)  ![Hands cradle glowing spheres flowing upward from a hooded figure against a starry black background.](https://media.onyourmarkus.au/admin/2026/11/a39e3631-20e4-46ab-a2ed-681a2324a290.jpg) **FOLLOW THE DATSUNS ONLINE: ** **[WEBSITE](https://us.list-manage.com/pCkguHH4KBo?e=3758bcc5db&c2id=d8fc69bf59de4d11215c8d6988e0877f)****  / ****[FACEBOOK ](https://us.list-manage.com/Fbf0YYu6AJe?e=3758bcc5db&c2id=d8fc69bf59de4d11215c8d6988e0877f)****/ ****[INSTAGRAM](https://us.list-manage.com/tCVhssB0zSX?e=3758bcc5db&c2id=d8fc69bf59de4d11215c8d6988e0877f)**** / ****[SPOTIFY ](https://us.list-manage.com/3_Lf4tofAi9?e=3758bcc5db&c2id=d8fc69bf59de4d11215c8d6988e0877f)****/ ****[YOUTUBE](https://us.list-manage.com/15QT8Q9YSmC?e=3758bcc5db&c2id=d8fc69bf59de4d11215c8d6988e0877f)**** / ****[BANDCAMP](https://us.list-manage.com/IVCcVYk_1RT?e=3758bcc5db&c2id=d8fc69bf59de4d11215c8d6988e0877f)**