The song was produced by Tim Pagnotta and written by the group's four members: Tom Dumont, Davey Havok, Tony Kanal, and Adrian Young.

It is a new wave song that was influenced by the music of the 1980s and compared to the releases of English bands New Order and A Flock of Seagulls, as well as Havok's own work with AFI and Blaqk Audio.

Dreamcar is an American supergroup, consisting of AFI's lead vocalist Davey Havok and No Doubt members Tony Kanal, Tom Dumont, and Adrian Young.

[1] Zoe Camp from Pitchfork compared Kanal, who plays bass guitar on the song, to New Order's Peter Hook for his performance.

[14] Collin Brennan of Consequence of Sound said the song's '80s-sound fell within the New Romantic movement and compared it to English band A Flock of Seagulls.

[15] Orange County Register's Kelli Skye Fadroski considered Havok to be singing in an "'80s-rock" style that she said he had only briefly experimented with while a part of AFI and the American duo Blaqk Audio.

[18] According to Brennan, the song contains similar "sexy and dangerous" lyrics, which he found reminiscent to those of AFI, specifically Havok's frequent use of homonyms.

[15] Mikael Wood of the Los Angeles Times was more critical, calling it "expertly arranged" but ultimately forgettable aside from its "stylistic accuracy".

[31] An interactive, second version of the music video, allowing the viewer to change their point-of-view between Dumont, Havok, Kanal and Young, premiered on April 14, 2017, alongside the promotional release of "All of the Dead Girls" from Dreamcar.

[32] The main video was filmed in Los Angeles, with moments taking place at a local coffeehouse and alongside the Melrose Avenue shopping district.

[33] The video opens showing the members' individual point-of-view shots; Dumont is ordering coffee, Young is readying his drum kit, Kanal is driving to the shoot, and Havok is selecting his wardrobe backstage.

[28] One scene in the clip features Dreamcar eating at the Crossroads Kitchen vegan restaurant, at the exact table where Kanal, Dumont, and Young met Havok for the first time.

Finance's Lyndsey Parker, while Tom Breihan from Stereogum discussed Havok's attire in the video, noting his lack of black clothing and comparing his mustache to that of American director John Waters.

[6] On the April 18, 2017 episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Dreamcar made their first televised appearance, performing both "Kill for Candy" and the parent album's second single, "All of the Dead Girls".