Not gonna lie, it’s a painful reminder of my age to see that Stonecutters are celebrating their 20th anniversary as a band. Although it was 20 years ago, it seems like only a short period of time has passed since I ran into band founder Brian Omer (guitar and vocals) at a show and he told me that his band, My Own Victim, had broken up and that he was working on material for a new band, Stonecutters.
After 20 years, six full-length albums, numerous tours, and worldwide acclaim, Stonecutters are still going strong. Although several members of the band have come and gone—and in the case of drummer Johnny Wooldridge and guitarist Chris Leffler, come back again—Omer has been there through almost all of it, (there was a short period of time where he left the band, only to reform it and reclaim the Stonecutters name after a feud with former band members).
In celebration of their 20th year as a band, Stonecutters have just released their second album, Christhammer, on vinyl for the first time ever via Third House Communications. Remastered for vinyl by guitarist Chris Leffler, the album itself is white with black splatter and features a lyrics sheet and updated front and back cover art by William David Pollard (Evergreen, Odessa, Four Rose Society).
Recorded at Headbangin’ Kill Your Mama Music by Chris Owens from November 2008 through January 2009 and released in March of 2009, Christhammer was a seminal record for the band, garnering much critical acclaim for its raw, powerful mix of progressive metal, thrash, sludge, hardcore, punk, and technical death metal. Decibel Magazine called the album “one big ball of awesome” and went on to say, “This band rules harder than a Viagra overdose.” MetalSucks called it “one hell of a record certainly deserving of the attention of the MS faithful.” And your own LEO Weekly said, “The group does a stellar job of melding a lot of influences into a cohesive act,” before going on to say, “Brian Omer’s sludgy vocals, steady and unyielding, are a lighthouse in the darkness of intricately plotted and paced musical chaos.”
The vinyl, along with the original CD version, are available for order through the Stonecutters’ Bandcamp page: stonecutters.bandcamp.com
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Stonecutters will also be playing a special 20th anniversary/vinyl release show at Mag Bar (1398 South 2nd St.) on Saturday, July 5th, with Centenary (Detroit) and Louisville’s own Galactic Spectre. According to Omer himself, they will be playing a majority of the Christhammer album live at the show, which will mark the first time some of these songs have been played live in several years. The show is for all ages and begins at 8 p.m. Advance tickets can be purchased for $10 through eventbrite.com and are highly recommended, as this show will sell out.
Throwback 2009 live video:
This article appears in Jun 6-19, 2025.
