We’re launching pre-orders on an exclusive vinyl pressing of Wednesday‘s third album and first for Dead Oceans, this year’s Rat Saw God. Our plum variant is limited to 400 copies, and you can pick up yours here while they last.
Rat Saw God has been one of 2023’s most talked-about indie rock albums, and it totally lives up to the hype (expect to see it on lots of year end lists as they roll out). In our review, we wrote:
When live music finally returned and Wednesday started playing shows again, they were surprised to look out into their crowds and realize they’d built up a fanbase of unfamiliar faces. “I had no idea that anyone we didn’t know personally would want to come see us,” drummer Alan Miller said in a recent interview with Ian Cohen for The Ringer. Their 2021 album Twin Plagues–one of that year’s true indie rock gems–had gradually and organically built up word-of-mouth buzz, and more and more people were catching on to the band’s uniquely appealing music. That album was the band’s third, but first with longtime collaborator Jake Lenderman as a full-time member, and it came out on Orindal Records, the small-but-trusty record label co-run by Owen Ashworth of Advance Base and Casiotone For The Painfully Alone. Jake–who’s also Wednesday singer Karly Hartzman’s partner–also releases solo music as MJ Lenderman, and his 2022 album Boat Songs also stirred up quite a bit of acclaim, drawing even more attention to Wednesday and to Jake’s casual drawl, which pops up a bit in Wednesday songs as well.
The momentum Wednesday had built up helped them ink a deal with Dead Oceans–the label that’s home to big-name indie acts like Phoebe Bridgers, Japanese Breakfast, and Mitski–and their first album for Dead Oceans, Rat Saw God, became one of the year’s most talked-about indie rock albums even before its official release. It’s presumably the album Wednesday would’ve written whether there were all these eyes on them or not, but it’s also the perfect album to release when you’re on the verge of a breakthrough. It’s bolder, grander, and flat-out better than anything Wednesday had released prior, it currently stands as the best introduction to this band’s work.
Picking up where Twin Plagues left off, Rat Saw God is like an alternate history of the ’90s, one where alt-country, shoegaze, and grunge were all fused into one thing. Wednesday aren’t shy about their ’90s-era influences–their 2022 covers album includes songs by Drive-By Truckers, Medicine, The Smashing Pumpkins, and Greg Sage of Wipers (and DBT get namedropped on this new album)–but they never sound like they’re imitating any of them; they’re drinking them up and spitting them back out in a way that sounds unique to Wednesday. The album’s first two singles are the band’s most sprawling songs yet–the country-gazing “Chosen to Deserve” and the eight-and-a-half minute grunge epic “Bull Believer,” which ends with an explosive climax that finds Karly screaming her head off. This is the work of a band who demands to be heard, and the rest of Rat Saw God follows suit. There are heavy, loud guitars that would’ve shaken alt-rock radio in the ’90s, and there are soft, countrified moments that are perfect for lazy Sundays. Karly’s singing and lyrical style are both gripping and full of range, and the moments when she and Jake sing together add an additional, special layer of warmth. There are certain aspects of Rat Saw God that fit in with today’s indie zeitgeist, but Wednesday don’t seem very concerned about following trends, which gives the album an already-timeless quality. Rat Saw God is a record that would turn heads no matter what year or decade it was released.
Stream Rat Saw God below, and pick up our plum vinyl variant HERE.
Wednesday have a bit more touring lined up for 2023, and then they’ll head on a big 2024 tour with Hotline TNT, They Hate Change, Draag, and more as support, varying by date. The NYC show is at Brooklyn Steel on January 25, with Hotline TNT. See all dates below.
WEDNESDAY: 2023-2024 TOUR DATES
Dec. 8 – Los Angeles, CA – Zebulon +
Dec. 9 – Ojai, CA – Deer Lodge +
Dec. 10 – San Francisco, CA – Rickshaw Stop +
Dec. 12 – Portland, OR – Mississippi Studios +
Dec. 13 – Seattle, WA – Tractor Tavern +
Jan. 19 – Raleigh, NC – Lincoln Theatre @
Jan. 20 – Winston-Salem, NC – SECCA @
Jan. 21 – Boone, NC – Lily’s Snack Bar @
Jan. 22 – Richmond, VA – The Broadberry @
Jan. 23 – Washington, DC – 9:30 Club @
Jan. 25 – Brooklyn, NY – Brooklyn Steel @
Jan. 27 – Pittsburgh, PA – Thunderbird Music Hall @
Jan. 28 – Cleveland, OH – Grog Shop @
Jan. 30 – Nashville, TN – Eastside Bowl @
Feb. 1 – Oxford, MS – Proud Larry’s @
Feb. 2 – Pensacola, FL – The Handlebar @*
Feb. 3 – Jacksonville, FL – Jack Rabbits @*
Feb. 4 – Orlando, FL – The Social @*
Feb. 6 – Miami, FL – Gramps @*
Feb. 8 – Savannah, GA – Lodge of Sorrows @
Feb. 9 – Athens, GA – 40 Watt @
Feb. 10 – Chattanooga, TN – Cherry Street Tavern @
May 14 – Santa Fe, NM – Meow Wolf %
May 15 – Phoenix, AZ – Crescent Ballroom %
May 16 – San Diego, CA – Quartyard %
May 17 – Los Angeles, CA – The Bellwether %
May 18 – San Francisco, CA – The Fillmore %
May 20 – Portland, OR – Revolution Hall %
May 21 – Seattle, WA – Neptune Theatre %
May 22 – Vancouver, BC – Rickshaw Theatre %
May 24 – Missoula, MT – Zootown Arts Community Center %
May 25 – Bozeman, MT – The ELM %
May 28 – Denver, CO – The Gothic Theatre %
May 30 – Omaha, NE – Slowdown %
July 27 – Greenville, SC – Altered States Libation & Arts Festival
Aug. 23 – Málaga, ES – Canela Party
^ w/ Das Blisschen Totschlag
+ Karly Hartzman & MJ Lenderman solo show with support from Dan Wriggins
@ w/ Hotline TNT
* w/ They Hate Change
% w/ Draag