One half of country-pop music duo Ward Thomas, Lizzy, is absolutely stumped by a question she was just asked. "What is the biggest misconception about Ward Thomas?" she says, repeating the query back to me over the phone.

A few seconds of "umming" and "ahhing" later, and wondering what twin sister and co-star Catherine would say, Lizzy replies: "Maybe, that if people think we dress well every day, that is a complete lie.

"Normally, we're wearing muddy, ripped jeans, looking like real Hampshire country girls. But when we're Ward Thomas, we look a lot more stylish."

She laughs down the phone as she answers, and I apologise for probing her with such a bizarre question.

Bizarre, yes, but the inquiry was simply an innocent attempt to get to bottom of who this intriguing musical duo really are.

They might not be instantly recognisable to some, but the 24-year-old twins have already got a number one album to their name, 2016 record Cartwheels, and their new LP Restless Minds was a top 10 hit in February.

Championed early on by the late Sir Terry Wogan on BBC Radio 2, their 2014 debut From Where We Stand topped the UK country chart and peaked at 41 on the main albums chart before being quickly snapped up by Sony Music.

Billed as "Britain's first country music stars" by critics, they have spent much of their time in the home of country music Nashville, working on their twangy, country-pop sound that has drawn comparisons to the likes of Taylor Swift and the Dixie Chicks.

The rising stars have the world at their feet and credible success under their belts already, and yet they are still shielded from the mainstream celebrity lifestyle. So, who are they?

"We are very simple country girls," Lizzy admits.

"We have two dogs and we go on a lot of dog walks. We like to see friends a lot and we like a lot of exercise.

"It's important for our mental health, especially before touring. I need to be quite physically fit before a tour; you're doing a lot of physical work on stage, although it doesn't look like it."

Through a chuckle she adds: "I don't know how Beyonce does it and she's dancing as well!"

The sisters grew up on a farm in Hampshire with their family, but now they rent a "lovely little cottage" together nearby, and love to be at home with their loved ones and animals.

That's not to say they don't enjoy touring though; in fact, they love it, and they adore visiting different places.

But they're more low-key than many of their music star peers - you're more likely to find them in a cafe sipping on a hot drink than out at the clubs all night.

Lizzy shares: "We do try to fit things in. Sometimes we go to the old castles in Scotland.

"Sometimes, if we're knackered, we do our own thing as we're spending such an intense amount of time together... I like to go off and read my book in a cafe or something."

As wholesome as the Ward Thomas sisters appear, they have very much in common with the majority of millennials.

Mental health issues, anxiety caused by social media, and the struggles of being a young woman in an arguably difficult modern world formed much of the inspiration for Restless Minds.

"We were talking about a lot of these topics in the songwriting room, and Catherine and I had conversations about them with our friends," Lizzy explains.

Both Lizzy and Catherine have dealt with anxiety, like many in their age group.

"We're at that age where people are figuring out what they're doing. Our friends have got out of university and finding their feet, and it's a bit of a smack in the face.

"It's a big, bad world and it's daunting sometimes. A lot of what we write about is trying to help people, to say that we're all there too, and you're not alone.

"And to say that 'it's OK to not be OK' and to not have your s*** together."

"A lot of emotional energy" went into the album, which includes the tracks It's Not Just Me ("about when you're feeling anxious and lost, but learning you're not alone") and the rousing, rocky No Filter, a withering takedown of the fake reality of social media.

They're hitting the nail on the head in terms of what matters to people of their generation, as well as the wider issues facing women in the music industry in general.

Lizzy is thankful that she and Catherine have never had their own #MeToo moment, but they have faced discrimination as young women in a male-dominated arena.

She recalls: "When we were really young, about 16 or 17, we went to Nashville. We went there as doe-eyed young girls, and everyone thought of us cute and sweet.

"We've been very lucky with the team we've had around us - we've never had a bad experience.

"The only thing I would say is that, sometimes, if a girl knows what she wants, she can be labelled as a diva, rather than just knowing what they want.

"I'm also speaking to other female artists and they say the same."

Fighting the fight for females in the business is somewhat of a cause for the sisters.

Lizzy continues: "Another point of that is the branding of girls. There are people like Ed Sheeran and George Ezra who look really normal. They can wear whatever they want to wear and get away with it.

"With a girl, they always have to have a certain look or a certain brand to them that distinguishes them from someone else.

"They have to have a specific edgy look compared to like, Ed Sheeran, who can just go on TV wearing a t-shirt and look very normal," she adds, not so much ranting but sounding somewhat weary about the whole thing.

"The artist that actually does break that mould is Sigrid. She always looks so natural and fresh in a normal white t-shirt and cool pair of trousers... but she still has to have that 'brand', you know what I mean?"

However, while Ward Thomas' act is certainly not based on their image alone, they do enjoy working on the aesthetic side of things to some extent.

"With every album we've tried to have a specific image that fits the brand," Lizzy explains.

"We both really like that because, with this album, we've been quite simple and clean with our look. It's all about reflection and we were just wearing black on the album cover.

"We wanted to represent what the album is all about, and represent the title Restless Minds. That's very important to us."

And it gives them a chance to kick off those muddy jeans, even if just for a little while.

Restless Minds by Ward Thomas is out now. They play SWG3, Glasgow, on April 5