American Dreams (song)

The song was released as a single on April 21, 2017.[3][4] A lyric video was released a week later, on April 28, featuring a static-filled television set that flashes images of war and the American flag alongside the song's lyrics.[5][6] The band released a video of a live acoustic performance of the song in July 2017.[7] In August 2017, the band released a music video for the song, consisting of the band interviewing Americans about their thoughts about the hardships of achieving the "American Dream", interviewing people in a school, barbershop, a boxing gym, and tattoo parlor.[8][9]

The band teamed up with modern music producers Nicholas Furlong and Colin Brittain to create a sound for the song that melded the band's nu metal sound from their first major record label release Infest, with more modern sounding music.[10] The song starts with a simple guitar chord being played, leading to a heavier, wall of sound of guitar by Jerry Horton and vocals by band frontman Jacoby Shaddix.[11] Shaddix delivers forceful and rhythmic aggressive vocals in the verses, leading up to a large, soaring melodic chorus.[11][12] Lyrically, the song explores sentiments of doubt and detriment in the concept of "The American Dream", with the chorus containing the lines "American lies / We're trying to see through the smoke in our eyes / So give me the truth / Don't tell me your lies / Cause it's harder to breathe / When you're buried alive by American Dreams."[11][13] The lyrics were inspired by Shaddix's resentment of current state of American politics, notably the lowbrow arguments of the 2016 Presidential Debates.[14]

The song received a mixed reception from critics. Loudwire ranked it as the 19th best hard rock song of 2017.[1] Cryptic Rock praised the song for being "quasi-political" and asking some "eerily pivotal questions", concluding that it was "an interesting direction for the band, it is a truly catchy, upbeat rocker that tackles some weighty subject matter."[15] Conversely, "Metal Sucks" strongly criticized the song's vocals, calling it "terrible".[16]

• Jacoby Shaddix – lead vocals
• Jerry Horton – guitar
• Tobin Esperance – bass
• Tony Palermo – drums