Wednesday Rat Saw God
Released Apr 7, 2023 Dead Oceans
Consensus forming 3 professional reviews Updated Oct 6, 2026
Broadly positive consensus
Consensus is still forming across 3 professional reviews. Wednesday's Rat Saw God stakes a claim for the band's leap from cult curiosity to formidable voice, balancing shoegaze-country fusion and diaristic rock with an often cathartic intensity.
How ChoruScore worksCritics' Top Tracks
The songs critics returned to most
Bull Believer
3 critic mentions
“Wednesday’s most ambitious track, "Bull Believer" is a two-part suite that careens from a bullring to a house party to an ex’s bedroom,” — The Line of Best Fit
Hot Rotten Grass Smell
3 critic mentions
“their sweet-sounding yet vigorous guitar dynamics tap into ‘90s college rock with sharp mastery of the material ("Got Shocked," "Hot Rotten Grass Smell")” — No Ripcord
Chosen to Deserve
3 critic mentions
“Surely the band’s crowning achievement and a contender for song of the year, the single finds vocalist/guitarist Karly Hartzman rifling through a scrapbook of teenage memories:” — The Line of Best Fit
Full critic consensus
Wednesday's Rat Saw God stakes a claim for the band's leap from cult curiosity to formidable voice, balancing shoegaze-country fusion and diaristic rock with an often cathartic intensity. Across three professional reviews the record earned a 76.67/100 consensus score, and critics point to its stylistic variation as both its greatest strength and occasional fault.
Reviewers consistently celebrate the sprawling centerpiece “Bull Believer” as the album's emotional apex, a two-part, sludgy build that moves from bullring noise to a metallic coda and anchors the record's themes of grief, memory and youth versus maturity. Other standout tracks singled out across reviews include “Chosen to Deserve”, praised for Karly Hartzman's candid, teenage-memory lyricism, and “Hot Rotten Grass Smell” with its blistering opener energy; mentions of “Quarry” and the pedal-steel balladry of “Formula One” further flesh out the best songs on Rat Saw God. Critics note the album's marriage of grunge pop, country rock and distortion delivers moments of real catharsis and vivid rural-America storytelling.
While professional reviews are largely admiring, some observers flag the record's shifts in tone as slightly disjointed, a trade-off for the band's refusal to narrow their palette. The critical consensus suggests Rat Saw God is worth hearing for its standout tracks and emotional urgency, and positions Wednesday as a band on the rise whose songwriting about fringe lives rewards repeat listening.
Below, the detailed reviews unpack those moments of ascendancy and the few rough edges that keep the conversation about where the band goes next alive.
Track Ratings
How critics rated each track, relative to this album (0-100). Only tracks that made critics feel something are rated.
Hot Rotten Grass Smell
Bull Believer
Got Shocked
Formula One
Chosen to Deserve
Bath County
Quarry
Turkey Vultures
What’s So Funny
TV in the Gas Pump
Get the next albums worth your time.
Critic-backed picks in one clean digest. No clutter.
What Critics Are Saying
Deep insights from 3 critics who reviewed this album
Critic's Take
Wednesday’s Rat Saw God feels like a deliberate bridge between reverent influence and original grit, and the best tracks are where that tension pays off. The sprawling centerpiece “Bull Believer” is praised as the album’s emotional apex, a tuneful, sludgy build that culminates in a rousing finale. Equally notable are the sharp, ‘90s-tinged guitars on “Got Shocked” and the pedal-steel balladry of “Formula One”, which together show why listeners ask about the best songs on Rat Saw God. Karly Hartzman’s ashy poetry ties these tracks together, giving the best tracks a clear narrative urgency and vocal conviction.
Key Points
-
The best song is “Bull Believer” because it is the album’s centrepiece, building tuneful dissonance into a rousing, grief-driven finale.
-
The album’s core strengths are Hartzman’s evocative songwriting and the blend of dreary pedal-steel ballads with sharp, ‘90s-tinged guitar dynamics.
Themes
Critic's Take
Wednesday navigate the split personality of Rat Saw God with a rare clarity, and the best songs show why. The bruising two-part “Bull Believer” is their most ambitious statement, careening from bullring noise to metallic coda with exhilarating abandon. Yet it is “Chosen to Deserve” that steals the show, Karly Hartzman rifling through teenage memories and landing the album’s emotional center. For best tracks on Rat Saw God seek out the visceral “Bull Believer” and the triumphant “Chosen to Deserve”; they capture the record’s tug between reckless youth and weary adulthood.
Key Points
-
The best song is "Chosen to Deserve" because its intimate, memory-laden lyrics and triumphant alt-country licks make it the album’s emotional center.
-
The album’s core strength is balancing shoegaze noise and alt-country songwriting to find beauty between reckless youth and weary maturity.
Themes
Critic's Take
Wednesday arrive on Rat Saw God with a fizzing, confident energy, the reviewer celebrating the band’s knack for marrying grunge pop and country rock. The piece singles out “Hot Rotten Grass Smell” as a blistering opener and “Bull Believer” as an eight-minute centrepiece where Karly Hartzman screams her lungs out, making them the best tracks on Rat Saw God. Lounging turns like “Chosen to Deserve” and “Quarry” provide textured contrast, showing why the best songs on the record balance noise and country croon. The tone remains admiring yet measured, noting stylistic variation can feel disjointed, but overall that the album signals a band on the rise.
Key Points
-
The best song is strongest where extended dynamics and a cathartic vocal climax combine, exemplified by "Bull Believer".
-
The album’s core strength is its blend of grunge pop and country rock anchored by diaristic lyrics and varied textures.