Spanish industrial metal band Hasswut has returned with Sauerstoff, a new full-length that fuses hard-edged electronics and heavy guitars into a tightly wound package of rhythm and energy. The album takes its name from the German word for “oxygen” and draws on themes of personal and social struggles.
Based in Alicante, Hasswut has built a sound that blends aggressive industrial tones with brighter melodic hooks and driving rhythmic intensity. Their process often begins with spontaneous jamming until they find a groove that inspires them to lay the electronic foundation of a track, which is then built up further with the addition of guitar.
In an email interview, Hasswut discussed the album, their creative process, evolving aesthetics, and more.
As heavy guitars and electronic elements both play major roles in your sound, I’m curious whether one generally provides the initial basis for your songwriting.
We always begin the songwriting process with the electronic elements — they’re the core foundation of our sound and set the mood and energy for the track. These elements help us define the tempo, the rhythm, and the overall atmosphere we want to create. Once we feel that the electronic base is strong and compelling, we start bringing in the guitars to add weight, emotion, and intensity.
However, we’re very careful with the balance. If the track starts to feel too crowded or overwhelming, we go back and refine things — sometimes that means stripping away certain electronic layers or simplifying parts so that everything can breathe. It’s all about creating space and contrast. Finally, when the instrumental feels cohesive, we focus on fitting the vocals in naturally, making sure they complement the dynamics and enhance the emotional arc of the song.
Following up on that, could you describe your creative and collaborative process?
Honestly, we don’t start out trying to create something specific. Our process is very spontaneous — we usually just start jamming until we find a rhythm or groove that really grabs us, something that makes us want to jump up, dance, or move. That feeling is what we’re chasing in the early stages.
We let ideas flow naturally without forcing them, and we follow whatever direction feels most exciting in the moment. Once we have a solid base or idea that we’re vibing with, that’s when we begin to think more intentionally about the direction of the track — what kind of atmosphere we want to create, how we want the energy to build, and what kind of final touch or message we want the song to carry.
Especially on this album, your music blends dark and aggressive elements with brighter electronic parts and hooks. Is this a balance you intentionally strive for?
Yes, absolutely — and it’s not something that’s unique to this latest album. Ever since Atomkrieg, we’ve been focusing more on making everything sit better in the mix and finding that right balance. Starting with Mund Zu! and especially through working with Raúl Abellán from Mixtery Studios, we’ve learned a lot about how to achieve that contrast without overwhelming the listener.
Our music has always carried a dark and aggressive tone, and that comes from our desire to express intensity — we love channeling that raw energy. But at the same time, we want people to enjoy it and connect with it, especially in a live setting. That’s why we aim to blend those heavier, darker moments with brighter electronic touches and catchy hooks — it’s all about keeping the emotional impact strong without losing the fun and dynamic aspect of the performance.
There was a five-year gap between Atomkrieg and Sauerstoff. Does the new album consist of material spanning that time, or did work begin more recently?
There wasn’t really a pause during that time, even though it might seem like it. The day Atomkrieg was released was actually the same day the COVID lockdowns began, so everything came to a halt — the tour, the album promotion, all of it.
When we realized that the situation was going to last longer than expected, we decided to get back to writing, which led to the Mund Zu! EP. That release became an important step for us — we were really happy with how it turned out, both musically and in terms of production. So while there was a gap between full-length albums, we stayed active creatively and continued developing our sound during that time.
On top of that, it’s important to mention that both Dani and Javi are also members of another band, Mind Driller. So we always try to coordinate releases and activity between both projects, spacing out the albums so they don’t overlap. That way, we can give each band the attention it deserves without compromising either one.
Did you have specific goals or concepts in mind going into the making of Sauerstoff?
We’ve never really set specific goals or had a clear concept we were chasing — things have always just flowed naturally for us. Everything we’ve achieved over the years has come on its own, without us actively pursuing it in a strategic way.
The band originally started just as a project to record a few demos. We had no intention of playing live or turning it into something bigger. And yet, here we are over ten years later, with several albums, an EP, a live album, and the incredible opportunity to take our music beyond Spain. We’ve been fortunate enough to perform in different parts of Europe, and with Sauerstoff, we’ve even made the leap to America, thanks to the amazing support we’re getting from Negative Gain.
So no — we didn’t go into this album with a defined concept. We just kept doing what we love, and things have grown in a very organic way.
Could you discuss the aesthetics behind Hasswut and how they may have changed or evolved over the course of your career?
Aesthetics have always played an important role in HASSWUT. Whether we like it or not, image matters — it can grab people’s attention, make them curious enough to check out your music, and even influence how your work is promoted or perceived.
Up until Sauerstoff, we had kept a fairly consistent look — a uniformed style with a mix of gothic and military influences, mostly using black and red. That visual identity became part of how people recognized us.
But with Sauerstoff— aside from the fact that our old gear was pretty worn out — we felt it was time for a change. We wanted something that reflected a sense of evolution in our sound and approach, so we leaned into a more futuristic aesthetic and also shifted the color palette. That’s why now you’ll see us incorporating blues, greys, whites… it was a way for us to visually represent the idea that we’re moving forward and growing as a band.
Hasswut is from Alicante, Spain. Do you have any thoughts to share on the music scene there and your place in it? Are there ways in which your location has influenced the band?
In Spain, the dark/electro scene is still quite small when it comes to audience size. There are some really amazing bands like Larva, Darkways, Terrolokaust,… but the infrastructure around the scene — venues, events, regular touring circuits — is pretty limited.
That said, things have started to improve recently. More events are popping up that are bringing in bigger names and expanding the reach of the genre, which is a breath of fresh air in a live scene that’s often dominated by punk and heavy metal.
As for our place in it, we’ve always felt a bit like outsiders in terms of genre, but we’ve also embraced that. Being based in Alicante hasn’t directly shaped our sound, but it has shaped our experience — we’ve had to look outward, connect with international scenes, and build things on our own terms. That independent spirit has definitely influenced who we are as a band.
I’m sure you’re fans of bands who sing in other languages, so I’m curious about your thoughts on how language influences this style of music — perhaps in terms of lyrical structure or delivery?
We sing in German because that’s what our vocalist prefers, but the rest of us would actually love to incorporate more Spanish into our music. We think it fits the industrial style really well because of its strong, powerful sound. Honestly, even though we listen to a lot of music in German, we also enjoy bands like Turmion Kätilöt or Ruoska from Finland, as well as bands in Polish, Russian… and of course, in English and Spanish as well. For us, it’s all about the energy and emotion the language brings to the music.
The video for “Sauerstoff” is very strong. Could you share a bit about how it was made? Do you have plans for additional videos from this album? And what’s next for you now that the album is out?
The video for “Sauerstoff” came from a need to capture the feeling of suffocation in our everyday lives — that overwhelming self-expectation that weighs us down, and the mental struggles that make us feel like we’re sinking deeper and deeper.
To bring this concept to life, we worked with Radikal Libre Films, sharing our vision for the video. We ended up shooting everything in one day in a grimy corner of an old building, which really added to the raw, intense feeling we wanted to convey. Afterward, the editing process began, and Radikal Libre Films did an outstanding job, so we’re really happy with the result.
After that, we released the lyric video for Koloss, but of course, a lyric video doesn’t have the same visual impact as a full music video. We’d love to make music videos for all our tracks if we could, but unfortunately, it’s not economically feasible.
Now that Sauerstoff is out, it’s time to focus on taking the music live. Over the next few months, we’ll be touring primarily in Spain, and we’re hoping to get back to playing in other countries soon as well.
Sauerstoff and other music from Hasswut can be purchased at hasswut.bandcamp.com.
