Wednesday, Gouge Away triumphantly rock a sellout crowd at The Granada

March 26, 2026

Alex Agueros,

Wednesday. // photo by Alex Agueros

Providing the ideal soundtrack for a grimy night in a college town, Wednesday ripped through Lawrence with a noisy night of “creek rock” in front of a sellout crowd at The Granada on Sunday, March 22.

Wednesday, led by Karly Hartzman, released Bleeds last September and garnered a level of acclaim appropriate for a band following up their best album, 2023’s Rat Saw God, with an even better one. They announced Lawrence’s leg of tour September 23 and sold out The Granada by early March.

“We’ve devoted a lot of our lives to figuring this out—and I feel like we did,” Hartzman said in a Sept. 19 press release paired with the release of Bleeds.

Hartzman’s storytelling details both sordid and heartfelt are the lifeblood of Wednesday’s albums, but took a back seat on Sunday as the band generated gigantic, searing sounds with urgency and precision. Booming opener “Reality TV Argument Bleeds” and fellow Bleeds standout “Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)” brought enough thunder to nearly drown out Hartzman’s vocals.

Further highlights of support from the band continued during and, for better or worse, between songs. The giddy introduction to “Phish Pepsi” and fast-forwarding into the final verse of their iconic cover of Gary Stewart’s “She’s Actin’ Single (I’m Drinking Doubles)” demonstrated how tightly the five-piece has developed together. Between tracks, soft-spoken Xandy Chelmis (lap steel, pedal steel) politely quieted a patron yelling, “Have my babies, Karly!” and later complimented the fresh apples available in Harrisonville, Missouri.

Hartzman followed one of the sweetest Wednesday songs to date, Bleeds lead single “Elderberry Wine,” with a couple of their most violent. “I’m interested in that,” Hartzman said upon encouraging a mosh pit for cathartic thrashers like “Bull Believer” and “Wasp,” which also served as closers in the no-encore set.

Gouge Away. // photo by Alex Agueros

Those active in the pit warmed up with Gouge Away. Lead vocalist Christina Michelle bounced across the stage with animated enthusiasm as the band played mostly selections from their excellent 2024 release Deep Sage with force aggressive enough to shake the concrete at The Granada.

Having recently expressed interest in touring with Gouge Away in a social media interview, Hartzman described the Florida hardcore group as “dream tour mates” during her set. Gouge Away proved well-suited openers not only in sound, but as another hard-working group recording their best work in real time, triumphantly kick-starting a deafeningly memorable night in Lawrence.

All photos by Alex Agueros

Wednesday

Wednesday setlist
Reality TV Argument Bleeds
Got Shocked
Fate Is…
Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)
Hot Rotten Grass Smell
Candy Breath
Formula One
Phish Pepsi
Quarry
She’s Actin’ Single (I’m Drinking Doubles) (Gary Stewart cover)
Gary’s II
Handsome Man
Bitter Everyday
Bath County
Elderberry Wine
Townies
Bull Believer
Wasp