There are a few interesting quirks about singer/guitarist Kate Cooper and drummer Damon Cox of the Australian rock duo An Horse. For example, Cox was once kicked by a goat as a child, and was later bitten by a rat when he worked at a pet store; Cooper was attending law school until she decided to drop out. The two share a mutual love for the 1971 Steven Spielberg movie 'Duel'; and when they go on tour, they ask each other who brought the toothpaste.

"I'd be like, 'No I didn't bring toothpaste,'" Cooper tells Spinner. "If I take toothpaste from my house, then I'll piss off my housemate. And if Damon takes toothpaste from his house, he'll piss off his girlfriend. So we always think one of us will have toothpaste, but never do."

Those qualities about An Horse seem as unusual as their name, which originally appeared on a hoodie given to Cooper by a friend. Formed two years ago, An Horse had recorded an EP and performed with bands including Tegan and Sara, the New Pornographers and Death Cab for Cutie. Now they are releasing 'Rearrange Beds,' their full-length debut album.

The duo from Brisbane met in 2005, at an indie record shop where they worked. At the time, they were in other groups. "We had similar interests and similar tastes in music," says Cox, "and toyed with the idea of maybe playing together one time. It took about a year to actually do it."

"Usually when we were really drunk at [different] shows," adds Cooper, "we'd be texting each other, 'Let's start a band!' The next morning I'd wake up and go, 'I think I started a band with Damon last night.'"

When the record store would close at the end of the day, Cooper and Cox would rehearse in the basement. "[Our boss] didn't really know what we were up to a lot of the time," says Cooper. "We didn't get caught. It was really cool because we knew that the boss wouldn't come in."

One of the turning points for An Horse occurred at the record store where Tegan and Sara Quin made an appearance. Cooper recalls how the store's boss made her stand at the end of the line to have his posters signed by the sisters.

"I was lining up," she says, "and Sara just went, 'Don't you work here?' And I said, 'Yeah. I have to get this signed.' We just started talking and something happened. She was like 'Do you want to hang out?' I was like, 'Yeah, let's hang out.' We just really clicked."

An Horse recorded some songs and then Cooper passed the demos to Tegan and Sara. "Three weeks later," she says, "I get this e-mail going, 'Do you want to come on tour? And I was like, 'Whoa! We weren't even gonna put that record out.'"

Since meeting Tegan and Sara, An Horse landed a record deal with label Mom and Pop, and have played the States. They will be doing so again starting this February 25 in San Francisco, with some dates at SXSW in March.

Asked what they would like to do while in America once more, Cooper and Cox revealed a curiosity about alien activity in the desert, and particularly the mystery lights in Arizona. "When we had a few days off in Scottsdale, we were at a Wal-Mart [and] there was a DVD [about it]," says Cooper. "We were like, 'That looks cool.' We never bought it but we've since been obsessed with it, and we're gonna get to the bottom of it."