Rat Saw God (album)

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Rat Saw God
Studio album by
Wednesday
ReleasedApril 7, 2023
StudioDrop of Sun (Asheville, North Carolina)
Genre
Length37:03
LabelDead Oceans
ProducerAlex Farrar
Wednesday chronology
Mowing the Leaves Instead of Piling 'em Up
(2021) 		Rat Saw God
(2023)
Singles from Rat Saw God
  1. "Bull Believer"
    Released: September 8, 2022
  2. "Chosen to Deserve"
    Released: January 18, 2023
  3. "Bath County"
    Released: February 23, 2023[7]
  4. "TV in the Gas Pump"
    Released: March 22, 2023[8]

Rat Saw God is the fifth studio album by American rock band Wednesday, released by Dead Oceans on April 7, 2023. It was preceded by the singles "Bull Believer" and "Chosen to Deserve". The album received high praise from critics, praising it as 'stunningly powerful" and "riveting". It was noted by critics for its depiction of life in the American South.

Release[edit]

On September 8, 2022, the band left Orindal Records and signed to Dead Oceans, releasing the single "Bull Believer".[9] On January 18, 2023, the band released the single "Chosen to Deserve" and announced their fifth album, Rat Saw God, which was released on April 7, 2023.[10] The album cover art is a 6' x 6' oil painting made by former bassist Margo Schultz.[11]

Critical reception[edit]

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?8.2/10[12]
Metacritic89/100[13]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[14]
Beats Per Minute87%[15]
Clash9/10 [16]
DIY[17]
Exclaim8/10[18]
Paste8.3/10[19]
Pitchfork8.8/10[2]
Rolling Stone[20]
Slant[21]
Under the Radar[22]

Rat Saw God received universal acclaim from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from professional publications, the album received an average score of 89, based on 16 reviews.[13]

Reviewing the album for AllMusic, Mark Deming concluded, "Some albums sound like the artists were trying with all their might to make an epic statement in words and music; Rat Saw God sounds like Wednesday had no such lofty aims, but their commitment to the people they write about and their instincts about crafting music to match make this a stunningly powerful work that may well turn out to be a masterpiece."[14] In Beats Per Minute, Tim Sentz claimed that the album is an example of, "a band operating at their highest most infectious potency, and the end result is riveting."[15] Craig Howwieson at Clash described it as, "Finding magic in the mire - Rat Saw God is an emphatic, uplifting reminder of the privilege of being alive."[16]

Writing for DIY, Sam Thirwell stated that, "While some of the stylistic variation here can feel disjointed at times, there's plenty on offer to suggest a band on the rise, capable of rising even higher."[17] In Exclaim, Dylan Barbabe claimed that, "Rat Saw God is wildly ambitious and easily lives up to the industry hype — Wednesday have succeeded once again in twisting nostalgia and existential dread into a braid of bruising, life-affirming rock music."[18] At Paste, Samantha described Karly Hartzman's, "Lyrical precision is what makes the record shine, the fact that Hartzman can recall the exact video game, in this case, Mortal Kombat, that someone was playing when her nose started bleeding at a New Year's Eve party she didn't even want to be at."[19]

Sam Sodomsky of Pitchfork wrote, "Wednesday's noisy, rangy sound finds a home in the quiet, lonely corners of America. Their outstanding new album is why they're one of the best indie rock bands around."[2] In Rolling Stone, Jon Dolan proclaimed that, "There's a Flannery O'Connor story collection worth of Southern fucked-up-ness going on here. But Wednesday are just as interested in sucking you in with a walloping guitar banger as they are in freaking you out with their snapshots from the ruralburban coming-of-age abyss. These songs are so catchy you almost don't notice the body count."[20] Jeremy Winograd praised the album in the review for Slant; " All of the wobbling between tempos and styles might sound haphazard, but it's executed with precision. And Hartzman's snatches of Americana imagery—rain-rotted houses, parking lots, "piss-colored bright yellow Fanta"—ultimately cohere into an evocative portrait of the fringes of American life."[21]

Year-end lists[edit]

Select year-end rankings of Rat Saw God
Critic/Publication List Rank Ref.
Consequence The 50 Best Albums of 2023
2
[23]
Exclaim! Exclaim!'s 50 Best Albums of 2023
6
[24]
The Line of Best Fit The Best Albums of 2023
2
[25]
Paste The 50 Best Albums of 2023
1
[26]
Pitchfork The 50 Best Albums of 2023
4
[27]
Rolling Stone The 100 Best Albums of 2023
27
[28]
Stereogum The 50 Best Albums of 2023
1
[29]

Track listing[edit]

All tracks are written by Karly Hartzman, Margo Schultz, Mark Jacob Lenderman, Richard Miller and Alexander Reuben.

Rat Saw God track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Hot Rotten Grass Smell"1:35
2."Bull Believer"8:30
3."Got Shocked"2:18
4."Formula One"2:52
5."Chosen to Deserve"5:32
6."Bath County"3:10
7."Quarry"4:07
8."Turkey Vultures"4:05
9."What's So Funny"2:32
10."TV in the Gas Pump"2:22
Total length:37:03

Personnel[edit]

All credits adapted from the record's Bandcamp page.[30]

  • Karly Hartzman – guitar, vocals
  • MJ Lenderman – guitar, back-up vocals
  • Xandy Chelmis – lap steel
  • Margo Schultz – bass
  • Alan Miller – drums
  • Alex Farrar – production, engineering, mixing
  • Huntley Miller – mastering

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Krueger, Jonah (April 7, 2023). "Wednesday Touch the Divine on the Glorious Rat Saw God". Consequence. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d Sodomsky, Sam (April 7, 2023). "Wednesday: Rat Saw God Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  3. ^ Hardman, Neville (April 7, 2023). "With Rat Saw God, Wednesday find beauty in the mundane". Alternative Press. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  4. ^ Deville, Chris (April 4, 2023). "Album Of The Week: Wednesday Rat Saw God". Stereogum. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  5. ^ Cills, Hazel. "Wednesday's 'Rat Saw God' is fearlessly, chaotically, grimly American". NPR. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  6. ^ Winograd, Jeremy (April 3, 2023). "Wednesday Rat Saw God Review: An Album That Expressively Embraces the Extremes". Slant Magazine. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  7. ^ Blistein, Jon (February 23, 2023). "Backseat Revivals and PJ Harvey: Wednesday Talk Surreal Southern Rock Saga 'Bath County'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  8. ^ Zemler, Emily (March 22, 2023). "Wednesday Drop Hallucinogenic, Tour-Inspired Video for 'TV in the Gas Pump'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  9. ^ Moreland, Quinn (September 8, 2022). "Wednesday Sign to Dead Oceans, Share New Song "Bull Believer": Listen". Pitchfork. Retrieved January 20, 2023.
  10. ^ Strauss, Matthew (January 18, 2023). "Wednesday Announce Tour and New Album, Share "Chosen to Deserve" Video: Watch". Pitchfork. Retrieved January 20, 2023.
  11. ^ "Wednesday on Instagram: "Rat Saw God is out 🐀 Endless thanks to my bandmates who out did themselves on these songs!!! I'm constantly in awe of y'all and can't wait to play these songs live with ya on these 10000000 tour dates @alex_farrar is a fucking legend for the way he captured these songs in the recordings…. Working with him for the past two albums has been a match made in Heaven!!! @_dropofsun_ is #1 Special thanks to @m_argo_rita_ville for creating this incredible oil painting of the portrait by @zacharychick, and to @chajbo for taking the final album cover!! And of course to everyone @deadoceans for rollin with my dumb assssssss ideas and bein unconditionally supportive!! @rustysutton …. You're our bud and our freakin GUY!!! Literally wouldn't have made this happen without you dude Literally the list of people who helped make this happen is endless … but also wanna make sure to shout out @l____au @philwaldorf @aliamraheem @libby.party @eloyvseloy @hendoslice @rachelbolland"". Instagram. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  12. ^ "Rat Saw God by Wednesday reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved April 20, 2023.
  13. ^ a b "Rat Saw God by Wednesday Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  14. ^ a b Mark Deming (April 7, 2023). "Wednesday - Rat Saw God Album Reviews, Songs, & More". AllMusic. Retrieved April 28, 2023.
  15. ^ a b Tim Sentz (April 7, 2023). "Album Review: Wednesday - Rat Saw God". Beats Per Minute. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
  16. ^ a b Craig Howieson (April 7, 2023). "Wednesday - Rat Saw God". Clash. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
  17. ^ a b Elvis Thirlwell (April 5, 2023). "Wednesday - Rat Saw God review". DIY. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  18. ^ a b Dylan Barnabe (April 5, 2023). "Wednesday Level Up Once Again on the Bruising 'Rat Saw God'". Exclaim. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
  19. ^ a b Samantha Sullivan (April 7, 2023). "Wednesday Takes an Intimate Snapshot of the South on Rat Saw God". Paste. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
  20. ^ a b Dolan, Jon (April 7, 2023). "Wednesday Are Scary-Good Southern Indie-Rock Heroes on 'Rat Saw God'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
  21. ^ a b Winograd, Jeremy (April 3, 2023). "Wednesday Rat Saw God Review: An Album That Expressively Embraces the Extremes". Slant. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
  22. ^ Moody, Mark (April 5, 2023). "Wednesday - Rat Saw God". Under the Radar. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
  23. ^ Sharp-Moses, Aidan (December 4, 2023). "The 50 Best Albums of 2023 Ranked". Consequence. Retrieved December 15, 2023.
  24. ^ Gormely, Ian (November 30, 2023). "Exclaim!'s 50 Best Albums of 2023". Exclaim!. Retrieved December 1, 2023.
  25. ^ Leight Walker, Sophie (December 4, 2023). "The Best Albums of 2023 Ranked". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved December 4, 2023.
  26. ^ Mitchell, Matt (November 27, 2023). "The 50 Best Albums of 2023". Paste. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  27. ^ Mapes, Jill (December 5, 2023). "The 50 Best Albums of 2023". Pitchfork. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
  28. ^ "The 100 Best Albums of 2023". Rolling Stone. November 30, 2023. Retrieved December 1, 2023.
  29. ^ "The 50 Best Albums of 2023". Stereogum. December 5, 2023. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  30. ^ "Rat Saw God by Wednesday". wednesdayband.bandcamp.com. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
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