“Rat Saw God” by Wednesday Album Review

Rat Saw God, the awaited sophomore album by Asheville, North Carolina band, Wednesday, has finally been released. Their new era began when they released their first single, “Bull Believer,” back in
September of last year. That song offers jarring and calming vocals from lead singer Karly
Hartzman. It was such a good lead for this new album. After listening to the other singles they
released since then, like “TV In the Gas Pump,” “Chosen to Deserve,” and “Bath County,” I
knew this album was going to be really good. I’ve been counting down the days until this release.
I know country music gets a lot of crap since it’s deemed as the “worst genre” but I have to
disagree with that statement, especially since Wednesday does an incredible job at creating a
country-folk-alternative sound on this new album. Hartzman’s upbringing in the South can be
seen as a big influence in this album. As a southern girl myself, I appreciate good
alternative/indie/folk adjacent music made by musicians from the South.

This album’s themes are about the past, reflecting on trauma, anger, and growing up. The lyrics
are so raw and honest. Hartzman is probably one of the best lead singers of a band I’ve come
across in a hot minute. She has a slight country twang to her singing, which adds flare to the
band’s sound on top of their unique instrumentation. Her speech and way of singing just
scratches something in my brain, I can’t explain it.

I absolutely love her screaming on “Bull Believer.” If you’ve never heard any of Wednesday’s
music, that single should be the first one you listen to just because it encapsulates Hartzman’s
anger and lyricism in a seven-minute run. I love screaming along to the lyrics: “Finish him” since
she repeats that over and over at the end of the song. It is a therapeutic experience, to say the
least.

My favorite songs are “Bath County,” “What’s So Funny,” “Formula One,” and “Quarry.” It’s
tough to pinpoint which ones I like the most since each individual song captures different
emotions and topics. I really like the sound that Wednesday created with this album. It blends
many genres together and Hartzman’s vocals are a part of those different genres. The album is
cohesive with its different sounds but each song offers something different. This album deserves a
9/10. My favorite lyric (and one that I would totally love to get tattooed on me one day) is:
“Nothing will ever be as vivid as the darkest time of my life.” Just wow.

So far, this album release has been the best of 2023. Everyone needs to give Rat Saw God a
listen! You will not regret it.

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