Although six months earlier people were telling New Zealand's Datsuns to give up, by mid-2002 London's music press was hailing them as "genius." By then the Datsuns had already been playing their brand of garage rock for six years, ever since they met at school in Cambridge and formed a band called Trinket.

Back in 1997, as Trinket, they won the local radio station's Battle of the Bands. The following year, now called The Datsuns, they won again. In the years that followed the group released only a handful of singles, all on vinyl and all on their own record label, Hell Squad Records. While beloved of student radio and known for their live Who-like performances, they were a relatively unknown group even at home.

For more information check out the muzic.net.nz Profile for The Datsuns

Smoke And Mirrors debuted in the Official New Zealand Top 40 Albums on 9 October 2006. It has been in the Top 40 Albums for three weeks with a highest position of #16. There are four albums by The Datsuns in the Top 40 Albums with one reaching Number One.