Faith Hill, Tim McGraw Look Ahead to New Music

Country music Tim McGraw and Faith Hill have plenty to look forward to in the new year. The superstar husband and wife both have new albums in the works -- which they say may be the best they've ever done.

Faith, whose last studio album, 'Fireflies,' hit shelves in 2005, is working on a new set of tunes that recall her formative years. "I'm a lover of soul music," she tells Australian newspaper, the Sydney Morning Herald. "I was brought up in the church and that was the first music I ever heard and ever performed. I've tried to infuse that into my albums over the years but I haven't been able to do that until this one. I feel like I've dug a little deeper than previously. I fought for that space within myself and I found it."

Her spouse, who has been embroiled in a bitter legal dispute with his label, Curb Records, over his recording contract, says he also feels optimistic about his future in country music. "I really feel like there's a lot more ahead of me than behind me," he acknowledges. "I'm really just starting to figure out what I want to do and the music I want to make. I'm only about 30 percent into my career. It's been foothills until now."

The couple, who have been married for 15 years, will reunite on stage next year, when they perform a series of shows in Australia. The 2012 dates mark Tim's second tour Down Under, but the first for his superstar wife.

"Honestly, I didn't know what to expect in advance," he recalls of his tour through the country last year. "I wasn't sure if anyone knew who I was in Australia, so to come down there and sell out shows and get the reaction we did from the crowd just made it a no-brainer in terms of coming back."

Tim and Faith's Australian tour kicks off on March 14 in Perth. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased here.