If there’s a song on his latest CD that describes Gary Allan’s approach to his life and career, it would be “Like It’s a Bad Thing,” a tune that includes these lines in its chorus:

“They say I’m out on the edge, I’m too willing to risk every bone, every breath. They say all I am is a crazy dream like it’s a bad thing.”

“That song does sound like me, doesn’t it?” Allan says of the song, one of 11 on his latest release, Living Hard. “I think if anything that sort of renegade spirit is even more prevalent on this album. We’ve always danced to our own tune.”

Allan has been considered a Nashville “rebel” ever since his first album, Used Heart for Sale, was released in 1996. Two of Allan’s musical influences, Buck Owens and Merle Haggard, were also deemed outside the Music City mainstream, but they still amassed legions of country music fans. And that’s something Allan hopes to achieve with his music.

“I want to reach even bigger audiences,” Allan says. “I feel like I’ve got so much to say and so much to do right now, and things are moving so fast. It’s great to have something new to throw at people.”

Allan’s last studio album, Tough All Over, featured material that found the California native dealing with the death by suicide of his wife Angela in 2004. Allan’s raw emotions came through on songs like “Puttin’ Memories Away” and “I Just Got Back from Hell.”

With Living Hard, Allan continues to put his personal touch on the songs that combine rock ’n’ roll energy with straight-ahead country music, a trademark of the talented singer-songwriter’s work.

“I’m excited for people to hear it [the new album],” Allan says. “It’ll take you through a whole range of emotions, and I think it’s going to take you on a journey. That’s my goal.”