Sanctus Dominus

Sanctus Dominus (Latin for "Holy Lord") is an American Christian metal band from. Formed in 1995 at, the band is known for their avant-garde sound which includes influence from nu-metal, progressive rock and electro-industrial and their imagery which features masks, makeup and costumes as well as their unique live shows. The band are often noted for the broad tonal range of their lyricism, covering subject matter both spiritual and secular, along with exploring themes of Christian hypocrisy and fundamentalism and injustices committed in the name of religion, along with faith-based criticisms of xenophobia, homophobia, racism, intolerance, political extremism, and even the Christian music industry.

The band gained mainstream popularity by the late 1990s as part of the nu-metal scene, touring prolifically within both Christian and secular circuits, where the band gained a cult following for their energetic and theatrical live shows typified by their on-stage masks & costumes, along with the usage of 3 extra percussionists using timpani drums equipped with LED and laser lighting. The music video for "Bad Boys "for" Jesus" from In God We Mistrust entered the top 5 on MTV's Total Request Live. In 2003, they became the first Christian metal band to record a MTV Unplugged performance, featuring the and the band performing what vocalist Louie Ortega referred to as "symphonic acoustic metal" versions of their songs.

Over their lifetime, Sanctus Dominus has gone through many changes in band lineups, with co-founder/lead guitarist Rod Drachmann being the only consistent member and the sole participating founding member (Will Baker, while being the other of the two remaining founding members, mostly works behind-the-scenes). The current lineup is comprised of 14 members, who are a part of a collective of musicians, artists and filmmakers known as Jesus Loves Me Inc.