Acid Mothers Of The Stone Age are a duo of guitarists who live and record in the US and Germany, and though they are both from the metalcore tradition, they are neither metal nor hardcore. The four pieces they play on their debut album, "Against The Odds", are no less effective in the way that their name suggests, and feel a little like an extension of the genre, as if they were just trying to figure out how to make their way in the world.

The first half of their album is a blur of guitars and drones, with the usual set-up, like the sound of a band doing a co-sign for a skyscraper. But the second half, which weaves through the usual fuzzbox thrash metal, begins to slow down and even the most melodic parts start to sense less and less as they progress. The sound of a dream, it seems. This sounds like something from another era, like a sci-fi film of the sort that includes the sound of, well, birds chirping, or maybe a needling sound system.

The album’s second half is more interesting and seems to be a reflection on the current state of American metal, with a mix of choruses that feel like a kind of manifesto against what they do. The title track is a blazing run of guitars, horns and percussion that makes the band sound like they’ve been running through an industrial corridor for a while, as if they were listening to old factory records. “Red River Ruin” is a riff-heavy head trip that’s a little like a slow-motion journey through the night, with a bit of death metal to it. “Our Vision” is a compelling album closer with the sound of a band still making music that feels a little like it’s moving at a snail’s pace.