Heave Media

It's like that other band, but better.

An Horse's debut delivers, even if you have heard it before.

An Horse

Rearrange Beds

Released on Mar 17, 2009

Australian indie-pop duo An Horse originally began as the solo project of the principal songwriter, Kate Cooper.  In 2008, while touring Australia, Tegan and Sara discovered Cooper after playing in a record store where she worked, and invited Cooper along for the US tour.  Damon Cox joined the band shortly before the tour, and An Horse was complete.  Also prior to their first album, the band joined Death Cab for Cutie on their Australian tour. 

On the opening track of their full length debut album, Rearrange Beds,  An Horse sounds a bit like Rilo Kiley.  Kate Cooper’s soft yet punchy vocals layered over the plodding snare drum make for an extremely enjoyable track that is easily one of the best on the album.  The vocals definitely carry the track.  The snare drum and even sections of the guitar can bleed into the background during the verses, when the spotlight is clearly on Cooper.   The biggest strength of An Horse is their ability to mesh upbeat music with soft, mellow vocals.  On “Scared as Fuck”, it can be difficult to decide whether to tap your foot to the beat or close your eyes and sway to the warmth of Kate Cooper’s voice. 

As a whole, Rearrange Beds has some pacing issues.  Many of the tracks have highs and lows, making for a good balance, but on occasion, there will be a complete lull that breaks apart any flow that had built.  Case in point: “Company”.  The song simply drags.  Melancholy vocals and distorted guitars make for a dissonant offering that will be skipped just about every time it comes up on the playlist, because you’re constantly waiting for the song to end.  Don’t think that just because the song is low tempo that it’s bad though.  Another low tempo track, “Little Lungs” is far better, and not plagued by the dissonance of “Company”. 

Perhaps the fact that most tracks are generally good, but not completely distinct in any hugely discernable manner points to the fact that An Horse doesn’t have a completely distinct sound.  Yes, it is a good sound, but it is a very generic indie-pop sound, made unique by Cooper’s vocal accent. 

Rearrange Beds, from beginning to end, is a solid album that has room for improvement.  It has plenty of peaks and its fair share of valleys, but the result leaves you wanting more.  An Horse seems to be just shy of really breaking out, and when they do…watch out.  There’s potential for something really special here. 

Posted by Cory Roop on Mar 12, 2009 @ 6:30 am