It would appear that the fractures that have developed within the ranks of the Dogma camp also extended to the upper echelon of the divisive outfit. This past October saw the proverbial dam break, with a veritable parade of former members of the outfit coming forward with allegations against the band’s management.
Those claims ranged from mistreatment, lies and manipulation, to being underpaid and callously fired. Claims of highly unfavorable contracts and more were also leveled against the band’s management. You can dive into those past allegations via this recent piece on the matter.
When boiled down, the running theme behind the various allegations made claims of the all-female hard rock band being puppeteered to a degree by management, who were said to have called the shots and oversaw who plays in the band. The allegations also cast further scrutiny on the high turnover rate within Dogma‘s ranks, with numerous musicians having been cycled through the band to assume the roles of established personas.
Now one of those architects behind Dogma, Alvaro Rabaquino (aka The Dark Messiah), has spoken out. In a statement issued today, December 03rd, he condemned the actions of one of his former co-founders of the group.
Explaining his own involvement, Rabaquino described himself as one of the primary songwriters and musicians to have laid the groundwork for Dogma. However, he clarified he is no longer involved in the group. In the below statement he describes an internal power struggle that took place, while condemning the actions of the current leadership behind the outfit. In one particularly damning passage, Alvaro stated:
“The narrative was being shaped by someone who was not a musician, not a writer, and not a woman, someone outside the musical, creative, and lived experience of the performers, and that dissonance became impossible to ignore.”
As the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel, his statement also reveals that he and three former members of Dogma — vocalist Grace Jane Pasturini (Lilith II), guitarist Amber Maldonado (Lamia II), and guitarist Patri Grief (Rusalka) — have banded together in a new outfit dubbed VindictA, Their debut single “The Face Of The Clown“, is now available below. That group intend to effectively ‘reclaim’ some of the songs they participated in while a part of Dogma, while also pursuing their own new music together.
Alvaro‘s statement is available below:
Date: December 3, 2025
Issued by: Alvaro RabaquinoOfficial creator, songwriter, and artistic director. Co-founder of the original DOGMA project.
Also known as: ‘The Dark Messiah‘This is not DOGMA anymore.
For over a year I’ve watched in silence while the project I co-founded was turned into something I do not recognize artistically, ethically, or humanly.
Let me be absolutely clear:
I have no artistic, business, or ethical involvement whatsoever with the version of ‘Dogma‘ currently touring under that name.
Dogma started as a project created by three partners: Alvaro Rabaquino (myself), my brother Federico Rabaquino, and Ian Di Leo.
I wrote the music, the lyrics, recorded multiple instruments, and led the musical production. Federico contributed as a songwriter, musician and executive producer, supporting the creative direction, arrangements, and recording process from the very beginning.
Ian‘s role was management and business. His later registration as ‘co-author’ of the songs, under his stage name ‘The Light Messiah‘ reflected an internal agreement at the time, not actual musical composition or production. He is not a musician, and he did not write, arrange, or produce the material.
Before Dogma, I had already built a career as a songwriter and producer, including writing music and lyrics för a female-fronted project where the audience consistently praised the songs. For Ian, Dogma was the first time he tried to position himself as a ‘creator’ in music, despite not composing or producing anything. That distinction matters.
Although I wrote all the music and lyrics, much of the thematic direction was influenced by a single external voice, one that did not reflect the perspective, experience, or identity of the women on stage. Over time, that mismatch became obvious to many fans, who felt the lyrics carried a male gaze while the project was being sold as ‘female empowerment.’
The narrative was being shaped by someone who was not a musician, not a writer, and not a woman, someone outside the musical, creative, and lived experience of the performers, and that dissonance became impossible to ignore.
In September 2024, without prior agreement and against the spirit of our partnership, Ian attempted to register the Dogma trademark in his own name. He took unilateral control of social media, communications, and finances, and even took the band on tour, collecting payments and making every decision, despite my explicit objections and without my participation or consent as a co-founder.
After watching him violate my rights as a partner and destroy any remaining trust, I cut all ties and moved the conflict into legal channels.
From that moment on, I have not authorized, supervised, or endorsed any of the decisions made under his control. All operational, financial, and public matters rested entirely in his hands and in his one-man company, IDL Entertainment. So when people refer to ‘Dogma‘s management’ in recent scandals, they are not pointing at a faceless committee.
They are pointing at him.What followed is now public knowledge: constant lineup changes and replacements, shows promoted with one group and performed by another, lipsynched performances, postponed shows, cancelled tours, and testimonies of mistreatment, detention, and immigration issues during international tours.
Every piece of chaos you’ve seen since then came from that same ‘management’, not from the people who created the music.
While Dogma continued to appear on posters and stages, I watched from home as someone else lived the dream I had built. I received nothing for the work I created, and the legal disputes drained the time and energy I should have spent making music.
I invested six years of my life, my money, and my creative energy into building this project from the ground up. Under his control, that investment was never recouped, and substantial amounts were collected in Dogma‘s name while the main songwriter and producer, myself, received nothing. What disappeared was not only the money, but also the project I created.
The Dogma you once knew, the songs, the sound, the performances that felt real, no longer exists under that name. What is being sold today is an empty shell built on our work, without the original creative team and against the values the project claimed to represent.
In the past days, several of the artists who carried these songs on stage have spoken out. Their testimonies match what I experienced from another angle.
Dogma was taken from its creators, stripped of its identity, and redirected to serve one man’s agenda, far from the music and far from the truth.
I’m not asking anyone to attack or harass anyone online. That helps no one.
I’m asking you to stay informed, to listen carefully, and to support the real artists.
I’m not here to feed drama.
I’m here to take responsibility for what I create and to offer you a way out of this manufactured narrative.Now, together with Grace, Amber, and Patri, the original performers who chose to step away from that chaos, we reclaim what was ours from the beginning.
Today, we give it its true name:VINDICTA.
They will continue performing the songs we created, and together, we will keep bringing new ones to life.
The first page of this new chapter, ‘The Face Of The Clown‘ is now live on all platforms.Support the real artists behind this story by following the official channels below.
Don’t follow the noise.
Follow the voices that paid the price to tell you the truth.The spirit of the project you connected with is alive.
And today, it stands under its rightful name:VINDICTA.
— Alvaro Rabaquino
The Dark MessiahOfficial creator, songwriter, and artistic director
Go-founder of the original DOGMA projectMEDIA & OFFICIAL LINKS
Instagram: https://instagram.com/officialvindicta
Facebook: https://facebook.com/OfficialVindictaBand
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@offlcialvindicta
Official Link Hub: https://beacons.ai/officialvindicta“
Announcing the launch of VindictA on social media today, Pasturini stated:
“VindictA is our new chapter. We’re stepping forward releasing new music that’s heavier, sharper, and finally authentic — and carrying the songs that were already written, performing them with the respect they deserve. The old facade is gone. This is VINDICTA. Our new single is ‘THE FACE OF THE CLOWN‘.
