Artist: Oerheks
Country: Belgium
Label: Amor Fati Productions / Babylon Doom Cult
Formats: LP / Cassette Tap / CD
Year: 2026
All of the sudden, we found ourselves in unfamiliar Oerheks territory. Already in the interview we did in 2023, shortly after the second demo ‘Landschapsanachronismen’ was released, band mastermind H. lined out that the first five demos had been recorded, along with a split with Aerdryk. But when that prophesied Split was unleashed earlier this year, the future remained open. Yet not for long, as in late 2026 we find ourselves with the answer, an apotheosis of all that demo activity: the very first Oerheks album, ‘De Stroom’.
Now if you followed the band previously, perhaps the cover of ‘De Stroom’ might throw or put you off a little bit. I know it did for me. Gone are the old map of ‘Cagghenvinna’, the photos of the oak of ‘Landschapsanachronismen’ and ‘Winterzonnenwende’, the drawing of ‘Valkengebed’ or the sigil of ‘Heksen & Geesten van Brabant’. While I understand the relevance of the river the Demer as central to H.’s passion for his home region, I’m not particularly smitten by this new cover, probably mostly due to its omission of the band logo and replacing it with a rather sterile font. But anyway, I cannot look into the head of the artist and no doubt there was a conscious decision made here. So enough talking about the cover and let’s focus on what really matters. The music.
And that is what you would call the culmination of all previous Oerheks work. ‘De Stroom’ features exactly the atmospheric Black Metal formula that H. honed and experimented with throughout the demo journey. If I had to compare it, I would say it most strongly leans towards ‘Landschapsanachronismen’ and ‘Valkengebed’, but certainly the spirit of the first demo ‘Cagghenvinna’, the darker tone of ‘Heksen & Geesten van Brabant’ and the ambiance of ‘Winterzonnenwende’ linger on ‘De Stroom’. The album consists of three lengthy tracks and a shorter acoustic outro, and like the demos, each track has a little bit of a different tone to it yet unified by the central theme of how water shaped the Cagghenvinna area.
‘Herovering der Diestiaenzee’ is certainly the darkest of the tracks and has a somewhat dissonant tone, bringing it initially closer to ‘Heksen & Geesten van Brabant’. Clear is that the guitar sound is richer, in particular in the rhythm department, but H.’s trademark catchy riffs remain an anchoring theme throughout. As the song progresses it takes a somewhat warmer tone, pulling it closer to the more observing nature of the second and third demo. At the end, the tides then wash away and into the pouring rain of ‘De Vloed Vervloekt’. Distorted strumming is a prelude to a menacing pace, but as a whole the track is more atmospheric and less dark, in line with ‘Landschapsanachronismen’. The bass guitar is rich in the more midpaced section, and H. skilfully plays with pace throughout the song. Such is the same in ‘Veranderende Demermeanders’, a track that is more uniform in the riffs and a little bit more floating in atmosphere, much like ‘Valkengebed’. In particular the lengthy Ambient interlude draws it close to that demo, but as always, it’s the combination of atmosphere and entrancing riffs that stand out and make it another excellent Oerheks track. The album closes fully Ambient and acoustic with ‘Oerwater’, an almost calm sound of the water leaving the area, giving way to Cagghenvinna as we know it today.
I remain impressed by what H. is doing with Oerheks. It really feels like all the experimenting on the demos has come together into a cohesive record, that all the ideas that H. had led to ‘De Stroom’. Now that we know where all those steps have taken us, I can’t wait to hear what the future has in store for Oerheks.
