K/DA – ALL OUT EP Review

What do K-pop and League of Legends have in common? The virtual female K-pop group K/DA which consists of 4 characters taken from Riot Games’ League of Legends: Akali, Evelynn, Ahri and Kai’Sa. Will I spend the rest of this post talking about the virtual popstars? Why yes, yes I will. Also if the name sounds familiar, I have mentioned the group a few times across the blog in ‘My Year in Music’ and in Monthly Round Ups.

So let me explain: I’m a big gamer when I have the internet connection (which is rare now *sobs*) and I have been playing League of Legends since my first year of college which, scarily enough, was 9 years ago now. Anyway, Riot Games (the creators of League of Legends) design skins for in-game characters which can be purchased but, on occasion, themed skins for multiple characters (aka champions) are created which is exactly what happened with K/DA.

Initially, the skins designed were Pop/Star skins and the virtual band then released their first single Pop/Stars to coincide with the League of Legends World Championship Schedule and the release of the skins in-game in 2018. Following the success of K/DA, Riot then put together the virtual group True Damage which, in universe, was brought together by K/DA star Akali. The name K/DA comes from the in-game abbreviation for Kills, Deaths and Assists. The virtual group’s vocals are generally provided by Madison Beer, Jaira Burns and Miyeon and Soyeon from (G)I-DLE and, on occasions, by Wolftyla and Bea Miller.

This year, however, K/DA made a comeback, dropping the singles THE BADDEST and MORE then announcing that the group would appear at the League of Legends Worlds Ceremony with their newest virtual collaborator, Seraphine, and that there would be an EP released called ALL OUT and I’m here to give opinions on the EP and its songs. Both K/DA and Seraphine have Instagram pages and Seraphine’s Instagram shows her progression from an indie artist to collaborator, producer and popstar in her own right. Calling all the BLADES, we’re going to dive into ALL OUT.

ALL OUT EP 

ALL OUT consists of 5 songs from the K-pop girl group with contributions from a spectacular line up that includes TWICE, Aluna, Kim Petras, Bekuh Boom, Lexie Liu and Annika Wells across the five tracks and new found indie-pop rising star, Seraphine, on MORE. The EP seems to convey the different personalities and attitudes of the group with a huge variety of styles utilised across the board. This EP easily shows just how much music can be covered by the general term K-pop and was released on November 6th through Riot Games and Stone Music Entertainment. Overall, K/DA have moved away from “pop” and have settled into grooves where each member has the capability of shining their brightest alone but, when fused together in one collection, we can see the real capabilities of a genre defying girl group. Let’s have a look at the tracks, in order, in more detail.

THE BADDEST

Akali’s track is fast paced and with what could almost be described as a not so subtle callback to True Damage in the lead up to the chorus. The heys peppered into the intro with plenty of drum rolls in the production give the song some real bounce. In this track, ‘Kali takes a big lead, bringing her own pace to the track and setting the tempo with her rap. It’s all done with lyrics loaded with self-confidence that show a cheeky, playful indifference for anyone in her way because when Akali is the best you’ll know; ”Sorry, not sorry for being the best…Look at the gold, call it a flex.”

MORE (feat. Seraphine)

By far the most balanced track on the EP with Seraphine-centric tendencies as they include her ad libs across the track, giving this out of this world effervescence to the song. Everyone is given their spot in this song and the combined vocals of K/DA contrast spectacularly with Seraphine’s vocals. Seraphine’s vocals are feather light with sweetness and innocence abound and solidly backed by the more mature and confident tones of K/DA. MORE is the statement that, when combined, this is what K/DA is capable of.

VILLAIN

If there was ever a track that is the very definition of Evelynn, it is this one. Dark and sultry with emphasis on the line “I’m a straight up villain,” this track has beats that hit hard and heavy which makes a statement much like our favourite diva (who’s no stranger to hitting hard in the dark). VILLAIN has plenty of emphasis on its unapologetic lyrics that show Evelynn’s certainty in her character and is by far the most mature track on the EP.

DRUMS GO DUM

Drums are a big part of dancing and this track very much suits the personality of Kai’Sa, as lead choreographer of K/DA. If I was to compare it to anything it would be Blackpink and it exudes all of Kai’Sa’s confidence and her ability to take challenges in her stride. The heavy drums give it an almost EDM vibe which is lifted with the falsetto vocals peppered through the track that will give you chills and the dancers of the world will love to sink their teeth into this track. It builds and drops perfectly and you will bop/dance/nod even if you have no sense of rhythm and two left feet.

I’LL SHOW YOU

Definitely the most pop influenced track on the EP and so synthy it’s almost bubblegum pop. This is the perfect track for the OG idol of K/DA to sing with layered vocals and a wonderfully retro feel which makes this track seem like the only person who could ever sing it was Ahri. This track has an almost Disney quality (think Breakthrough from Lemonade Mouth) to it and has such an uplifting theme that you can’t help but smile as you listen but it also highlights our leading lady’s pride and the tenacity and determination that got her to where she is today.

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