AMG Review of Kill the Dreamer's Dream

Bret Love
All Music Guide

For anyone who tends to snicker derisively whenever they hear bands like Blink-182 described as punk, the Fleshies are for you. This Oakland quartet conjures up the gleefully unpolished spirit of punk rock ghosts past, with slashing guitars, furious rhythms, and screaming vocals so vitriolic they make Billie Joe Armstrong sound like freakin' Johnny Mathis. With an aggro sound loud enough to peel paint off the walls and lyrics that run the gamut from the moronic (see "Meatball," whose first verse is "meatball rollin' really fast/meatball rollin' up your ass/meatball hot on your plate/meatball gonna get you laid") to the political (see "(What If We) Arm the Homeless?"), this ain't exactly the kind of band you wanna take home and play for yer dear ol' ma. But with sneering punk attitude and humor to spare (see the tongue-in-cheek country ballad coda that closes "Shitface"), Kill the Dreamer's Dream makes the perfect soundtrack for teenage rebellion.