Singled Out: Rockborn's Rock Me Harder

Keavin Wiggins | 08-10-2021

Rockborn just released their new single "Rock Me Harder" and to celebrate we asked frontwoman Luanne Reid to tell us about the track. Here is the story:

'Rock Me Harder', was born out of a couple of rough ideas between John (Lyell - guitarist), who had this incredibly heavy riff, and some lyrics I had been toying with for quite some time. His riff gave me a shove in the right lyrical direction. I needed the "foundation" and inspiration that his riffs gave me to finish the lyrics, and of course after hearing Dino (Serna - Bass), and Gary (Gabaldon - drums), throw in their ingenious licks to John's riffs, I was able to come up with the melody lines and the phrasing needed to kick this song into gear.

Writing the lyrics to this song came to me when I first heard John's riffs. It's very powerful and driving, which is how Dino and Gary built the solid backbone of the song. Dino and Gary are a dream rhythm combination and make the heavy, badass grooves a reality for ROCKBORN. I wanted to write a song for a long time that would make women feel bolder and more empowered. This riff was just what I was looking for to inspire, as well as finish these lyric ideas I had for a while.

In quite a lot of hard and heavy rock songs, you hear so much 'male' power and men asserting themselves with heavy sexual innuendo. That's cool! I get it. But I wanted to write an anthem for women that gave them the opportunity to assert what they wanted. I wanted to give women a heavy hard rock voice and the 'permission' to ask for what they want. Sometimes as women, we are too afraid to ask for what we want, because of our upbringing or because, in some cases we are expected to just routinely accept what we get and expected to be forever happy with that, and our satisfaction is usually left behind. But most of the time we just forget that we have a voice because we are so busy trying as women, mothers, teachers, nurses, doctors, waitresses, business owners etc, to make sure everyone else around us is okay and getting what THEY want. 'Rock Me Harder' asks for what women want. It gives back the power to women and reminds them, "Hey, listen to me! I've got needs too! And this is what I want!" All of this feminine power with a driving, heavy hard rock groove that keeps it simple, but right in your face! That was my part of what the plan was for the song. This is an era of girl and women power!

The phrasing and arrangement came quite easily on this song. It's pretty straight ahead. I was looking for some melodic inspirations from some early 80's hard rock and singers like Ann Wilson and tried to emulate that style with some of the later 80's male singers who were great at melody lines like Axl Rose and Brian Adams. I know I don't sound anything like those voices or any of their melodies, but I did find ideas and assemble some of the straight ahead melodic lines that I needed to make me sound like myself. Does that make sense? I can't abide by 'Johnny one-note singers'! So I threw in lots of highs and lows and a big, happy, and much fulfilled scream at the end! LOL!

Overall, this song is a culmination of the synchronicity of all the members of ROCKBORN. I'm very pleased with the ferocity and impactful energy that John, Dino, Gary and I gave to this powerful anthem. I hope that everyone, digs on this fantastic groove that Gary and Dino masterfully perform and also the badass riff and the brilliant lead guitar of John. Most of all I want women to know that they deserve what they want and they can have what they want. Just be bold and ask for it, like 'Rock Me Harder' does!

Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen and watch for yourself below and learn more about the band here