Bleeds by Wednesday
85
ChoruScore
16 reviews
Sep 19, 2025
Release Date
Dead Oceans
Label

Wednesday's Bleeds arrives as a bruised, slyly funny Southern gothic record that mines small-town decay and personal turmoil for some of the year's most vividly drawn songs. Critics agree the band deepens its countrygaze palette here, marrying shoegaze wash and alt-country twang into moments of both tenderness and violent comic relief, and the critical consensus (an 84.94/100 across 16 professional reviews) places these songs among Wednesday's most assured work yet.

Across reviews, the best songs on Bleeds are repeatedly identified: “Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)”, “Elderberry Wine”, “Townies” and “Wasp” emerge as centerpiece moments where Hartzman's razor-sharp storytelling and the band's ragged abrasion meet melodic payoff. Critics praise how tracks like “Elderberry Wine” and “The Way Love Goes” trade quiet specificity for aching hooks, while bruisers such as “Wasp” and “Reality TV Argument Bleeds” deliver cathartic noise and grungy aggression. Reviewers consistently note themes of death, revenge, ennui and small-town gossip threaded through stark, scenic lyricism and stylistic extremes - from pedal-steel laments to crust-punk bursts.

Not all commentary is unreserved; a few critics flag occasional clumsy stylistic shifts, yet most professional reviews frame Bleeds as growth in confidence and craft. For readers asking "is Bleeds good?" the consensus score and repeated praise for its standout tracks suggest a record worth probing for its blend of grit, empathy and dark humor. Below follow the full reviews that expand on these vivid, often violent vignettes and the songs that make the album stick.

Critics' Top Tracks

The standout songs that made critics take notice

1

Elderberry Wine

12 mentions

"The very next track, ‘Elderberry Wine’ is another highlight, doing a complete 180"
Sputnikmusic
2

Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)

14 mentions

"‘Wound Up Here (By Holdin’ On)’ is where the album really takes off"
Sputnikmusic
3

Elderberry Wine (lyric)

1 mention

"“Said I wanna have your baby/Cause I freckle and you tan.”"
Pitchfork
The very next track, ‘Elderberry Wine’ is another highlight, doing a complete 180
S
Sputnikmusic
about "Elderberry Wine"
Read full review
12 mentions
90% sentiment

Track Ratings

How critics rated each track, relative to this album (0-100). Only tracks that made critics feel something are rated.

View:
1

Reality TV Argument Bleeds

6 mentions
76
03:02
2

Townies

13 mentions
86
03:15
3

Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)

14 mentions
100
03:28
4

Elderberry Wine

12 mentions
100
03:35
5

Phish Pepsi

11 mentions
38
02:29
6

Candy Breath

11 mentions
38
02:52
7

The Way Love Goes

10 mentions
68
01:56
8

Pick Up That Knife

10 mentions
70
04:21
9

Wasp

14 mentions
81
01:26
10

Bitter Everyday

7 mentions
40
03:21
11

Carolina Murder Suicide

10 mentions
50
04:24
12

Gary’s II

10 mentions
35
02:35

What Critics Are Saying

Deep insights from 17 critics who reviewed this album

Critic's Take

Wednesday's Bleeds is quietly bruised and fiercely melodic, and the best songs here underline that tension. The reviewer's ear latches onto “Elderberry Wine” as an instant classic, praising its everyday magic and Hartzman's evolution, while raucous tracks like “Townies” and “Candy Breath” supply satisfying hooks and guitars. The record wears its breakup-inflected tone without mawkishness, delivering accessibility without losing its ragged edge. For listeners asking what the best tracks on Bleeds are, start with “Elderberry Wine”, then the irrepressible “Townies” and the hooky “Candy Breath”.

Key Points

  • “Elderberry Wine” is the best song because it pairs Hartzman’s evolved songwriting with a memorable, classic-sounding hook.
  • Bleeds’s core strengths are its tense, breakup-tinged lyricism and a blend of fuzzy guitars with accessible, well-crafted songs.

Themes

breakup personal confession Americana-shoegaze fusion accessibility vs grit

Critic's Take

In a voice at once ominous and sly, Wednesday's Bleeds stakes its best songs as parables of small-town violence and longing. The reviewer lifts out “Gary’s II” as the outstanding closer, a somber tale whose twangy melodies and violent punch make it one of the best tracks on Bleeds. Equally vital are “Pick Up That Knife” and “Phish Pepsi”, the former shifting from fluttery strums to menacing riffs and the latter trading jammy highs for trapped, tinny intimacy. The argument is clear: these tracks are the album's clearest distillation of Hartzman's visceral lyricism and the band's uneasy musical range.

Key Points

  • The best song, "Gary’s II", is the album's standout for its vivid, violent storytelling and twangy, somber melody.
  • Bleeds excels by combining alt-country twang with grunge and shoegaze textures to render dark, small-town parables with visceral lyricism.

Themes

violence small-town Southern life dark humor alt-country and indie rock fusion grief and trauma
Rolling Stone logo

Rolling Stone

Unknown
Sep 22, 2025
80

Critic's Take

Wednesday’s Bleeds finds Karly Hartzman at her peak, where songs like “Elderberry Wine” and “Candy Breath” land as undeniable highlights, tender and terrifying in equal measure. The reviewer leans into Hartzman’s razor-sharp specificity - lines that lodge in your head make these the best tracks on Bleeds. The record shifts from fuzzy shoegaze to creek-rock with ease, which is why the best songs on Bleeds feel both intimate and expansive. Overall, the album’s dark stories and quotable lines make it an irresistible Southern gothic odyssey you’ll return to again and again.

Key Points

  • The best song is "Elderberry Wine" because of its startling couplet, honeyed tenderness, and timeless specificity.
  • The album’s core strengths are Hartzman’s razor-sharp, quotable lyrics and the shifting sonic palette from shoegaze to creek-rock.

Themes

death Southern gothic nostalgia small-town stories loss and memory
Clash Music logo

Clash Music

Unknown
Sep 19, 2025
80

Critic's Take

Wednesday's Bleeds lands as a bruised, witty set that picks out its best tracks with stubborn clarity - the muscular single “Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)” feels like the album's centerpiece and a reminder of Hartzman's force, while gentler triumphs such as “Elderberry Wine” and “The Way Love Goes” show the band's tender, pedal-steel-led side. The record moves between corrosive blasts like “Pick Up That Knife” and reflective, small-town vignettes, which makes queries about the best songs on Bleeds land on both its bruisers and its ballads. It is, in short, a band fully formed, balancing grit and sweetness in ways that make the best tracks stick in the head long after listening.

Key Points

  • The best song is “Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)” because the reviewer calls it a stand-out single with notable instrumentals and band power.
  • The album's core strengths are its balance of gritty indie blasts and tender, pedal-steel-led ballads, creating an unpredictable but cohesive band identity.

Themes

small-town life heartache true crime band identity gritty vs sensitive dynamics

Critic's Take

Wednesday sound like they have torn a hole in the cosy indie-country scene on Bleeds, and the record’s best songs underline why. Karly Hartzman’s voice weaponises lines on “Townies” and elevates the aching, atonal bliss of “Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)”, while the sweet-but-sour charm of “Elderberry Wine” shows how the band can nail a sugar-coated country song with a poisoned centre. The record’s highs - from the choogle of “Phish Pepsi” to the void-splitting roar of “Wasp” - make clear that the best tracks on Bleeds are those that balance catharsis with a dark, wry wit.

Key Points

  • The best song, especially “Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)”, balances atonal edges with blissful hooks to exemplify the album's strength.
  • Bleeds thrives on ragged abrasion, cathartic vocal delivery, and a darkly comic lyricism that pulls indie-country into alt-rock territory.

Themes

ragged abrasion alt-rock vs indie country catharsis dark humor

Critic's Take

Wednesday's Bleeds feels like a knockout delivered after a long setup, and the review makes clear the best tracks - “Wasp”, “The Way Love Goes” and “Candy Breath” - embody that punch. The reviewer dwells on Karly Hartzman's granular songwriting and gnarly imagery, praising how gutting waltzes and apoplectic noise collide. Specific calls for the throat-shredding “Wasp” and the cracked-porcelain tenderness of “The Way Love Goes” cement them as the album's standout moments. The tone insists these songs are where Wednesday's ability to turn debilitating lows into explosive highs becomes euphoric.

Key Points

  • The throat-shredding intensity of “Wasp” makes it the album's standout for sheer impact.
  • The album's core strengths are Hartzman's granular storytelling, gnarly imagery, and the band's ability to convert bleak material into euphoric musical peaks.

Themes

grimy margins violence and bruises songwriting craft distortion and slide guitar
Paste Magazine logo

Paste Magazine

Unknown
Sep 18, 2025
87

Critic's Take

Wednesday's Bleeds finds Karly Hartzman sharpening her gift for absurd, small-town tragedy while delivering standout songs like “Phish Pepsi” and “Candy Breath” with relentless vividness. The reviewer's voice revels in catalogue detail, arguing that the diptych of “Phish Pepsi” and “Candy Breath” is among the best examples of the band's countrygaze-meets-shoegaze alchemy. Tracks such as “Townies” and “Wasp” are foregrounded for mordant wit and visceral energy, respectively, making them essential when readers ask about the best songs on Bleeds. Overall, the record doubles down on the band's strengths rather than chasing mass appeal, and its combination of grimy lo-fi moments and punchy production keeps these best tracks compelling throughout.

Key Points

  • “Phish Pepsi” and “Candy Breath” are the album's best songs due to their blend of honky-tonk energy and shoegaze catharsis.
  • Bleeds' core strength is Hartzman’s precise, tragicomic storytelling married to varied textures from grimy lo-fi to punchy production.

Themes

tragicomic storytelling dark humor death and mortality specific scenic lyricism countrygaze and shoegaze fusion
Pitchfork logo

Pitchfork

Unknown
Sep 18, 2025
87

Critic's Take

Wednesday's Bleeds is where Karly Hartzman turns jagged detail into aching pop, and the best songs here - “Bitter Everyday” and “Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)” - painlessly prove it. In the reviewer's clipped, vividly grisly voice, Hartzman's lyrics and coiled performances make tracks like “Elderberry Wine” and “Wasp” feel both intimate and dangerous. The album's best tracks on Bleeds are those that marry violent imagery to real tenderness, the sort of songwriting that made Rat Saw God feel immediate and now gives this record its bruised center. This is praise that remembers the band on the road, the burned-out nights, and the furious tenderness that yields the album's standout moments.

Key Points

  • “Bitter Everyday” stands out for its climactic lovers' quarrel guitar solo and connection to Lenderman's guitar legacy.
  • The album's core strengths are Hartzman's vivid, grisly lyricism and empathetic voice turned into tighter, more expressive performances.

Themes

heartbreak touring fallout violent imagery empathy collage portraiture

Critic's Take

The review argues that Wednesday have made an across-the-board winner with Bleeds, singling out “Elderberry Wine” and “The Way Love Goes” as Karly Hartzman’s country-altar gems and “Townies” as the album’s most pop-forward beauty. Mark Moody writes in a clipped, vivid voice that blends mordant humor and music-history name-checks, noting how songs like “Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)” pair twinned guitars with thunderous Drive-By Truckers echoes. The review stresses variety - from sped-up re-dos like “Phish Pepsi” to the 90-second scream-therapy of “Wasp” - and repeatedly returns to the record’s dark, small-town narratives and sly pleasures.

Key Points

  • Elderberry Wine is best for its pure country-altar songwriting and standout status.
  • Bleeds mixes melodic and cantankerous tones, dark small-town narratives, and broader stylistic variety as core strengths.

Themes

death small-town decay black humor country influence revenge

Critic's Take

Wednesday's Bleeds feels bruised and transcendent, a record whose best songs - notably “Reality TV Argument Bleeds” and “Carolina Murder Suicide” - push the band to thrilling extremes. Marko Djurdjić writes with the same hungry, baroque admiration that crowned 2023's Rat Saw God, praising the opening explosion of “Reality TV Argument Bleeds” and the skeletal, organ-inflected centerpiece “Carolina Murder Suicide” as standout moments. He also highlights intimate, affecting tracks like “The Way Love Goes” and “Wasp” for Hartzman's fragile, torn vocal work, which lends the album both tenderness and menace. Overall, the review points listeners searching for the best tracks on Bleeds toward those songs as the album's emotional and sonic high points.

Key Points

  • The best song is the explosive opener "Reality TV Argument Bleeds" because it announces the album's furious riffs and emotional intensity.
  • Bleeds's core strengths are Hartzman's versatile, aching vocals and the band's fusion of Southern Gothic storytelling with loud, visceral rock textures.

Themes

Southern Gothic violence and decay empathy and vulnerability heartbreak small-town gossip

Critic's Take

Wednesday’s Bleeds finds its strongest moments in songs that let Karly Hartzman’s diaristic voice do the work, particularly “Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)” and “Pick Up That Knife”. The reviewer's eye lingers on the ennui and slacker-rock storytelling of “Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)”, and on the growing pain in the refrain of “Pick Up That Knife” as the track progresses. There is also praise for the ominous organ on “Carolina Murder Suicide” and the glorious noise of “Wasp”, which together underline why those are often cited as the best tracks on Bleeds. The album’s stylistic shuffle is noted as slightly maladroit yet emotionally enriching, which is why listeners searching for the best songs on Bleeds should start with those key moments.

Key Points

  • The best song is powerful because it channels Karly Hartzman’s diaristic voice into palpable ennui and slacker-rock storytelling.
  • The album’s core strength is emotional heft delivered through contrasts between styles and moments where music echoes the lyricism.

Themes

breakup ennui stylistic tension slacker rock emotional heft

Critic's Take

Wednesday sound more unguarded and daring than ever on Bleeds, where Karly Hartzman’s poetry and acrobatic vocals make tracks like “Candy Breath” and “Carolina Murder Suicide” feel essential. The record reads as a bruised but celebratory journal, and songs such as “Townies” and “Bitter Everyday” show the band balancing twangy charm with distorted catharsis. If you want to know the best songs on Bleeds, listen for the noisy release of “Wasp”, the lo-fi bounce of “Phish Pepsi”, and the slow-burning closer “Gary’s II” as standout moments that define the album.

Key Points

  • The noisy energy and vivid imagery make “Wasp” the album’s most immediate standout.
  • Bleeds succeeds by blending vulnerable narrative lyricism with Southern rock instrumentation and mature arrangements.

Themes

personal turmoil southern rock vulnerability artistic maturity heartbreak

Critic's Take

Wednesday arrive on Bleeds sounding more confident than ever, and the best songs - notably “Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)” and “Elderberry Wine” - showcase Karly Hartzmann’s storytelling and wry dark humor. Stout writes with clear admiration, calling the record a calibrated extension of their sound while praising moments of adventurousness and open-heartedness that make tracks like “Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)” stand out. He highlights memorable lines and vivid imagery that lift songs such as “Phish Pepsi” and “Elderberry Wine”, showing why listeners asking about the best tracks on Bleeds keep returning to these moments.

Key Points

  • The best song, “Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)”, pairs signature riffs with new melancholy that elevates the band.
  • Bleeds’s core strengths are Karly Hartzmann’s storytelling, a seamless blend of country/indie/shoegaze, and confident adventurousness.

Themes

growth and confidence blend of country, indie rock, and shoegaze storytelling and dark humor melancholy and vulnerability

Critic's Take

Wednesday lean into a bruise-and-heal dynamic on Bleeds, where the best songs - notably “Pick Up That Knife” and “Reality TV Argument Bleeds” - trade delicate country licks for jolting, cathartic feedback. Dom Lepore’s tone is admiring and precise, praising how Hartzman’s lived, cinematic lines make tracks like “Pick Up That Knife” feel immediate and communal. He highlights lap steel sweetness on “Townies” and the unsettling imagery of “Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)” to explain why these are the album’s most affecting moments. The review frames Bleeds as Wednesday’s strongest work yet, a collection whose vivid stories and amplified Southern rock make its best tracks stand out as the album’s emotional centerpieces.

Key Points

  • The best song, “Pick Up That Knife,” is the album’s emotional centerpiece because of its grounded anecdotes and hair-raising vocal coda.
  • Bleeds’s core strengths are Hartzman’s vivid storytelling and the band’s seamless blend of shoegaze noise with alt-country intimacy.

Themes

smalltown life contrast of shoegaze and alt-country existential storytelling raw emotion

Critic's Take

Wednesday’s Bleeds is at its best when it embraces extremes, and the review points to standouts like “Reality TV Argument Bleeds” and “The Way Love Goes” as proof. The critic praises the album for moving between grungy rock and breezy country-rock while never sacrificing a memorable hook. Hartzman’s volatile, expressive voice — from the slow build and scream of “Reality TV Argument Bleeds” to the painfully pretty “The Way Love Goes” - is framed as the connective tissue that makes these the best tracks on Bleeds. The result is an album that rewards both fury and tenderness, which answers the question of the best songs on Bleeds with clear, visceral examples.

Key Points

  • The best song, "Reality TV Argument Bleeds," is best for its slow crescendo, scream, and quintessential Wednesday hook.
  • The album’s core strength is marrying volatile, expressive vocals with hooks across extremes of grungy rock and country-tinged melodies.

Themes

stylistic extremes heartbreak grungy rock vs country-rock expressive vocals hooks amid noise
Sputnikmusic logo

Sputnikmusic

Unknown
Sep 15, 2025
94

Critic's Take

In a voice that still reveres atmosphere and texture, Wednesday push their palette on Bleeds, and the best songs - notably “Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)”, “Elderberry Wine” and “Phish Pepsi” - form the album's clearest triumphs. The reviewer frames “Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)” as the moment the band embraces a grungy, early-2000s alt-pop energy, while “Elderberry Wine” flips to a warm indie folk sunlit anthem. “Phish Pepsi” is singled out as a personal favorite for its 60s psychedelic rush, making the trio the best stretch and the primary reason to search for the best tracks on Bleeds.

Key Points

  • The best song stretch is the trio “Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)”, “Elderberry Wine” and “Phish Pepsi” because they shift styles dramatically and cohesively.
  • The album’s core strengths are its bold genre-blending, atmospheric production, and willingness to explore grunge, indie folk, psychedelia and noise.

Themes

genre blending shoegaze and alt-country fusion grunge and 2000s alt influences psychedelia indie folk warmth