The duo's hardcore, raw-edged country sound – as evidenced in full glory on their Columbia Records debut album "Tattoos & Scars" – is as unmistakable as their distinctive personalities, and they make no apologies about the fact that they like to shake things up.

After years of burning roadhouses down with their incendiary sound all over Lexington, Kentucky, they wouldn't really know any other way. Known for their rowdy onstage antics, the two readily admit their show can get a little out of hand. "We do get kind of wild onstage," admits Eddie, "so sometimes when we play in new places with the type of music we're doing, people are like, 'Wham! Hold on, boys, I don't know if we want to go that far or not!' We like to play music that sort of dares us, 'Can we step on this side of the fence or not?' Just good ole boys doing a little bit more than the law will allow...that's us!"

If Waylon, Willie and Haggard are the forefathers of country's outlaw movement, Montgomery Gentry are surely its new sons, with their seamless harmonies, heartfelt lyrics, and no-holds-barred attitude. If sincerity seeps from the veins of every song, it's simply because both Eddie and Troy have lived what they're singing, and they wouldn't have it any other way. "We believe in our music so much," says Eddie.

Both Eddie and Troy have rich musical backgrounds to draw from and the two were friends long before they entered a Nashville studio together. Coming up through the same music scene in Kentucky, they supported each other's efforts for years before teaming up to form Montgomery Gentry. Performing came as naturally as breathing to Eddie, who spent his formative years in his family's band along with brother John Michael Montgomery. "I basically just grew up in the honky tonks," remembers Eddie. "The bartender was our babysitter," he adds, laughing. "I wouldn't know anything else. It was a way of life for us. We had music equipment in our living room instead of furniture!"

Troy has fond memories of time spent in the living room as well, singing with his mother to old LPs. "My mom and I would sing with the record player to Elvis Presley, Tina Turner, early Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Nicks," remembers Troy. "She loved to sing and she was the one who first got me interested in music." The fact that performing would gain him notoriety in the halls in junior high didn't hurt, either. "I did my first performance at a talent contest in school," says Troy, "and that sensation of everyone patting you on the back and appreciating what you could do made me want more! In high school, I heard Randy Travis for the first time and that's when I knew this was what I wanted to do for a living. So from there on out, I did everything I could to get myself out in front of people and be heard."

Troy and Eddie's first joint musical effort was as part of a band called Young Country. After two years with that band, Troy left to try his hand at a solo career. His efforts materialized when he was awarded the top trophy in the Jim Beam National Talent Contest in 1994 and earned a slot opening for acts like Patty Loveless, Tracy Byrd and John Michael Montgomery. But he found Nashville a bit tougher nut to crack. "I knocked on a bunch of doors in Nashville," he remembers. "and had a bunch of them closed back in my face."

When Troy began to commiserate with Eddie about how difficult it was getting a break, the two started toying with the idea of working together. And after wowing the crowds together night after night in Lexington, they began to realize they had stumbled onto something really special. "We had worked together so well for so long," admits Troy, "and knew each other so well that I knew it couldn't be anything but right."

One listen to Montgomery Gentry's music confirms the duo's compatibility without a doubt. Their voices blend like smooth sipping whiskey and cool, clean ice, and their songs go down just as easy. The two glide from rebellious, defiant, gritty rockers to vulnerable, achingly humbling ballads with ease.

"We want our music to be real and from the heart," says Troy. "We like Nashville, and hope it's a place that will let us just be us. No vanilla, no doctoring. Just the music we like to make."

"We want to be true to ourselves and to our music," adds Eddie. "And we want to do music that's still played 20 years from now – that's important to us. We have to do it our way, though. Our saying is, 'There's a right way, a wrong way, and the Montgomery Gentry Way!' And the way I see it, no matter what, we're going to have fun with it, one way or another."

The old saying "what you see is what you get" applies when you meet Eddie Montgomery and Troy Gentry. Rowdy, fun loving, spontaneous and awesome talent all describe what these guys are about. Whether you meet them in person, hear their music on CD or see their live performance, the music and personalities are so infectious that you will also instantly become a fan.