Cosmic Dreams and Hollywood Nights: Domino Drive Set Their Course Beyond the Stars

Cosmic Dreams and Hollywood Nights: Domino Drive Set Their Course Beyond the Stars

Sweden has long been one of the world’s great breeding grounds for melodic rock and metal, consistently producing bands capable of combining memorable hooks, technical musicianship, and larger-than-life songwriting. Domino Drive continue that proud tradition on their sophomore album Cosmic Theater on Pride & Joy Music, a release that expands upon the band’s melodic rock foundation with ambitious themes, atmospheric storytelling, and a healthy dose of personality.

Comprised of keyboardist and founder Sebastian Okupski, bassist and lyricist Jonas Söder, and vocalist/drummer/guitarist Jonas Tyskhagen, Domino Drive have crafted an album that feels both grand and deeply personal. During a recent conversation with Highwire Daze, the trio discussed the new album, songwriting inspirations, Swedish metal culture, Hollywood adventures, black metal beginnings, future plans, and much more.

Introduce yourself and tell me what you do in Domino Drive.
Sebastian Okupski: I’m the keyboard player and founder of Domino Drive. I started the band in 2014. I’m also the primary songwriter.

Jonas Söder: My name is Jonas Söder. I play bass and write lyrics.

Jonas Tyskhagen: I’m Jonas Tyskhagen. I play drums on the record and handle lead vocals. I also play most of the rhythm guitars and some of the guitar solos.

Where are you all based out of, and what’s your local music scene like?
Jonas Söder: We’re from Uppsala, Sweden. What about the scene, guys? You probably know more than I do.

Jonas Tyskhagen: There are a lot of bands in Uppsala, especially metal bands.

Sebastian: It’s usually the heavier stuff. There’s a lot of thrash metal, death metal, and black metal. There’s some power metal too, but not much AOR. In that sense, we’re kind of unique.

Jonas Tyskhagen: But if you look at Sweden as a whole, there is a strong melodic rock and melodic metal scene.

Sebastian: Yeah, definitely. There’s a lot of melodic rock and metal throughout Sweden.

Let’s talk about Cosmic Theater. Is there an overall story or concept behind that title?
Jonas Söder: Not really a specific story, but the album covers a very broad range of themes. The songs deal with the future, the past, the present, mythology, fantasy, philosophy, and history. We needed a title that could encompass all of those ideas. That’s why Cosmic Theater ended up feeling so grandiose and fitting for the album.

Let’s talk about a few of the songs. “Time for Change” kicks off the album. Tell me about that song and the inspiration behind it.
Jonas Söder: Usually Sebastian is the primary songwriter, but this one started with Jonas and me in the studio. When we recorded our debut album, we realized we needed a few more up-tempo songs. “Time for Change” was one of the first songs that came out of that realization.

We knew we wanted something with more power and edge. I’m not really a songwriter the way these guys are, but I come up with guitar riffs. I improvised the opening riff, Jonas helped develop the idea, and I wrote the lyrics.

Looking back, it was actually a difficult period in both Jonas‘ and my personal lives. The lyrics are very uplifting, and I think I was subconsciously writing them for both of us. Something positive came out of those challenges, and that became “Time for Change.”

Jonas Tyskhagen: We were aiming for something with a real Bark at the Moon kind of feel. It actually started with a drumbeat where we thought, “This is perfect.” Everything grew from there.

Let’s talk about “Dandy Cool.” That’s based on a real person, isn’t it?
Jonas Söder: Actually, no. It’s based on a fictional character.

Dandies were these extremely vain, somewhat snobbish men in 18th and 19th century Paris and London. It was all about style and appearance. The French poet Baudelaire once said that a dandy should live and sleep in front of a mirror. They were all about image and grandeur.

I came up with the title and presented it to Sebastian. Then I immediately thought, “How is he going to make a song about dandies?” Maybe I should be more selective when pitching ideas.

Sebastian: I kept thinking about it and eventually came up with the idea that it should begin with a Baroque-style intro.

Jonas Tyskhagen: Yeah, he put on his curly wig and got to work.

Sebastian: Somehow, I managed to write that song.

Jonas Söder: It’s definitely a bit tongue-in-cheek. I always laugh when I hear it.

Absolutely, but it’s a very cool song. Let’s move on to “Heart to Heart.” Tell me a little about that one. That’s the song with the guest vocalist, right? Who is she?
Jonas Söder: Her name is Gabriella Lindmark. She’s the half-sister of the late Dave Lepard from the band Crashdïet.

Sebastian: I asked her if she could sing and she said yes. We brought her into the studio, tried it out, and it worked perfectly.

The song itself was inspired by classic Whitesnake-style power ballads. We struggled with the chorus for a while and rewrote it several times before we found the right version, but in the end I think it turned out really well.

Jonas Söder: We changed the chord progression a couple of times before it finally clicked.

How did she become involved with the project?
Sebastian: I actually knew her from about twenty years ago. She was dating a friend of mine back then, but I hadn’t seen her in years. Then one day I ran into her at a pub, and we started talking. I mentioned Domino Drive and said I was looking for a female vocalist for one of the songs.

Jonas Söder: She later sent us a demo.

Sebastian: Yeah, last summer. We already knew she was a great singer, but hearing the demo confirmed it.

Jonas Söder: Her voice is very angelic.

Let’s talk about “Universal Genesis (Metamorphoses Chapter One).” What exactly is that? Does “Chapter One” mean there will be more chapters?
Jonas Söder: (Laughs) I hadn’t really thought about that, but maybe now we’ll have to.

The inspiration came from reading Metamorphoses by the Roman poet Ovid. It’s a work that dates back to around 8 A.D. I sent Sebastian a message explaining the story, which deals with the creation of the universe, and about an hour or an hour and a half later he sent me the music.

What struck me was that the song sounded exactly like what I was reading. It captured the atmosphere perfectly. I immediately started working on the lyrics, and I think it turned into a very atmospheric track.

Sebastian: We should probably mention that this is often how we work. I write the keyboard arrangements and melodies first, but without any lyrics. I send the music to Jonas, and then he writes the lyrics afterward.

Jonas Söder: Usually by that point the song already has a title and an overall theme. That makes it easier for us when we’re developing it in the studio because we already know the atmosphere and emotions we’re aiming for.

Let’s jump to the final track on the album. I always like to see how an album closes, and in this case it’s “Wondermaker.” Tell me about that song.
Jonas Söder: Some reviewers have said it’s the perfect way to end the album, and I think that’s because it’s uplifting in much the same way “Time for Change” is at the beginning.

It’s really about total liberation. In a way, it’s almost a companion piece to “Make Waves” from our first album Smoke and Mirrors. That song was inspired more by the German philosopher Nietzsche. “Wondermaker” is philosophical as well if you really dig into the lyrics, but it’s more about putting your foot down, getting yourself together, and going out there and taking control of your life.

Basically, it’s about kicking ass.

I knew I’d have Jonas T on this interview, and you’re also in the excellent Winding Road. What’s currently going on with that band? And which came first, Winding Road or Domino Drive?
Jonas Tyskhagen: Winding Road came first. We’ve made two records together.

At the moment, though, everybody has families and careers, so there isn’t a whole lot happening with the band. We’re still friends, but life has gotten busy.

Speaking of heavier music, you have Fredrik Folkare on the album. How did that collaboration come about?
Jonas Tyskhagen: Fredrik and I go way back. We started playing together when we were about sixteen years old in a small village in Sweden.

At the time, death metal was incredibly popular, so that’s what we played. We’d spend entire days writing songs and rehearsing together.

Sebastian: They’re old friends.

Jonas Tyskhagen: I’ve also toured with one of Fredrik’s bands, Unleashed. Their drummer was injured in a motorcycle accident and couldn’t perform, so I stepped in and played drums on tour.

Sebastian: He was also on our previous album. We asked him, “Would you like to play a solo?” and he said, “Sure, no problem.”

Jonas Tyskhagen: He’s a great guy. Not overly talkative, but very dependable. As we say in Sweden, he’s more about action than words.

What was it like touring with Unleashed?
Jonas Tyskhagen: It was great, but people often have a romantic vision of touring. The reality is that you spend maybe one percent of your time playing music and the other ninety-nine percent waiting around.  Sitting in hotel rooms.

Hurry up and wait?
Jonas Tyskhagen: Exactly. These days I don’t really listen to much death metal anymore, but it was an important part of my musical journey.

And now to Jonas S. I believe you were also in a band called Goatworship under the name Goathead. Is that correct?
Jonas Söder: Yes, that’s correct.

Tell me about that.
Jonas Söder: You’ve definitely done your homework.

I was fourteen years old when we released our first demo. We played black metal during the height of the second wave of black metal in Scandinavia. This was when bands like Mayhem and figures like Count Grishnackh were raising hell in Norway, and to be honest, those guys had a pretty intimidating reputation.

We were just kids.

At one point we asked a guy if he’d manage us. He agreed, and the only thing we really wanted was permission to use his address on the demo tape as our official contact address.

The demo was called Vintras, and it actually received a surprisingly good review in a Swedish magazine called Close-Up.

The reviewer said we sounded like “the atmosphere of a pile of Bathory albums mixed with a case of beer.”

The reviewer wasn’t very kind about my vocals, though. He described them as sounding like “Donald Duck with a throat ache.”

The drummer and I were very young. There was an acoustic outro called “A Thousand Frozen Souls,” where we were basically screaming over an acoustic guitar.

The reviewer joked that it sounded like a group of teenagers who had eaten too much Saturday candy.

Nice! It doesn’t end there. You were also in Sarcasm on Hammerheart Records.
Jonas Söder: One of my best friends, Peter Laitinen, is the guitar player. I joined around the time of the first album in 2017.

Eventually Domino Drive became more of my focus, and I honestly started losing interest in death metal. Every year Peter would call me once a year and say it was time to record another album.

I’d show up at the studio without even listening to the songs beforehand. He’d play me a riff, I’d record it, and we’d move on to the next one.

Eventually, I realized that wasn’t fair to the rest of the band. There are so many great musicians out there who would have been much more passionate about it than I was. We parted on good terms.

For me, death metal is more fun to play than it is to listen to these days.

Sebastian, what other bands or projects have you been involved with?
Sebastian: I was involved in a couple of prog metal bands about twenty years ago. One of them was Mayadome. We actually played ProgPower USA back in 1999.

Then a few years later I joined Loch Vostok and played on a couple of albums. They’re another progressive metal band and a really good band.

Other than that, I’ve spent about fifteen years playing in cover bands, so nothing too famous.

Cover bands are where the money is.
Sebastian: Exactly!

Let’s go back to Domino Drive and your previous album. You had a song called “Hollywood Nights.” Tell me about that song.
Jonas Söder: Hollywood Nights. I’ve experienced a few of them. I first went to Hollywood around 1999. I stayed in an apartment on North Sycamore Avenue. I lived with a motley crew pretty much. We spent a lot of time hanging out at places like the Whisky and the Rainbow. There was also a club called Perversion nearby. So the song is really inspired by my own experiences in Hollywood.

Sebastian: I’ve never been there, so I can’t help with that one.

What about Jonas Tyskhagen?
Jonas Tyskhagen: No, but I’ve been to Buffalo for about three hours.

(laughter)

I was actually in Canada playing hockey. I was a goalie.

Eventually people started shooting the puck way too hard, and I found myself thinking more about drums than hockey, so I quit. But technically my last game was in Canada.

It sounds much more professional when I tell the story that way.

You have the new album out now. What’s next for Domino Drive?
Jonas Söder: The goal is to play a lot more shows.

We already have one song written for the next album. It’s not recorded yet, but it’s written. We’re very encouraged by the response to Cosmic Theater. A lot of people have commented on how cohesive the album feels.

We don’t really sit down and decide that we’re going to sound a certain way. We simply write songs and see where they take us. We’re always exploring new emotions, atmospheres, and ideas.

Sebastian: But we’re not planning on changing the style of music.

Jonas Söder: No, definitely not. Whatever it is we play (laughter)

Do you have any messages for melodic rock fans here in the United States?
Jonas Söder: The message is simple: listen to the album!

Sebastian: And buy the record, please!

Jonas Söder: Absolutely. And thank you for all the support. Hopefully we’ll get the chance to meet everyone in person someday. That would be phenomenal.

Let’s get the final word from Jonas Tyskhagen.
Jonas Tyskhagen: Make us come to Hollywood.

Jonas Söder: That way we can finally play “Hollywood Nights” for you where it belongs.

Sebastian: Exactly. It would be perfect for us.

In Conclusion

With Cosmic Theater, Domino Drive have delivered an album that is as ambitious as it is melodic, blending thoughtful themes with soaring hooks and an undeniable sense of personality. Just as importantly, the band demonstrates the camaraderie and creative chemistry that makes great records possible. Whether discussing Roman mythology, Swedish black metal history, unforgettable Hollywood adventures, or their plans for the future, Sebastian Okupski, Jonas Söder, and Jonas Tyskhagen never lose sight of what matters most: writing songs that connect on an emotional level.

As glowing reviews continue to arrive and plans for future recordings and live performances take shape, Domino Drive appear poised to expand their audience well beyond Sweden. And if their wish comes true, perhaps “Hollywood Nights” will one day echo through the Whisky a Go Go itself. Until then, Cosmic Theater stands as a compelling invitation into the band’s ever-expanding universe.

(Interview by Ken Morton)

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