You can trust Louder Our experienced team has worked for some of the biggest brands in music. From testing headphones to reviewing albums, our experts aim to create reviews you can trust. Find out more about how we review.

Metal and nuns have long been blasphemous bedfellows – think Cradle Of Filth’s ‘vestal masturbation’ T-shirt, featuring a woman of the cloth pleasuring herself. But newcomers Dogma are doing it for the girls.

Dressed in habits and with corpsepainted faces, their explicit, 80s-inspired Euro-metal songs are about shaking off religious purity and living life on your own terms. Tonight is their debut London show, and they’re going all-out.

Arriving at the Black Heart, punters are faced with an actual confessional booth, where they can spill their sins to a fire-and-brimstone-spouting priest in exchange for a free drink. Upstairs, the band appear onstage to the strains of an organ, and soon set about playing and writhing in pleasure.

Highlights include My First Peak, with Lilith singing about stealing an ear of corn from the convent kitchen and having her first orgasm – while on her period, because why not – and Father I Have Sinned, a ridiculously catchy tale of seduction.

Given no one knows where these Sisters have come from or who they are, and they’re putting on a theatrical occult rock act couched in Catholicism, comparisons with Ghost are inevitable – and on tonight’s evidence, they could one day follow Tobias Forge’s creation into arenas.

But Dogma feel more like a gang. As frontwoman, Lilith might be the obvious focal point, but the other members – guitarist Lamia, bassist Nixe, and drummer Abrahel – are just as compelling, slut-dropping and grinning lasciviously. These nuns are sexual, sure, but they’re not aiming for sexy. This is religious rebellion filtered through the female gaze, their pleasure taking priority over any men watching.

After the show, a male fan asks them to sign some photos for him. They decline. You can’t help but feel a bit sorry for him as he slinks away. But Dogma aren’t passive paper pin-ups – they’re larger-than-life action heroes who extol the virtues of guilt-free sex in the most OTT way possible. Come join their sexual sect.

A post shared by Metal Hammer (@metalhammeruk)
A photo posted by on

Eleanor was promoted to the role of Editor at Metal Hammer magazine after over seven years with the company, having previously served as Deputy Editor and Features Editor. Prior to joining Metal Hammer, El spent three years as Production Editor at Kerrang! and four years as Production Editor and Deputy Editor at Bizarre. She has also written for the likes of Classic Rock, Prog, Rock Sound and Visit London amongst others, and was a regular presenter on the Metal Hammer Podcast.

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.

"They're larger-than-life action heroes extolling the virtues of guilt-free sex in the most OTT way." Heavy metal nuns Dogma just took over London's Black Heart - are they the scene's next breakout band?

A sweaty, sold-out show, a confessional booth and sexually empowered heavy metal anthems. What's not to love?