In 2011, I wrote my first blog about Emilie Autumn—violinist, singer, author, costume designer, poet, and self-styled “Victoriandustrial” pioneer. That post became my most-read blog since 2010, three times more readers than my next highest blog. Every so often I take a look at my most view blog here on Murdockinations (and now there is my Patreon, Murdockinations+).
And every time I checked my top blog of all time? There she is, still on top. I really don't have a problem with that. Mostly. I mean, any blogger would like to see newer articles up on top from time to time.
But hey, I give it to her for getting there. And staying there.
In 2018, I revisited her work with a follow-up, Hot, Talented, Sapio Sexual - Emilie Autumn, but it drew far fewer eyes. Today, it feels like time for a proper update, because Emilie is still creating, evolving, and quietly weaving her own brand of theatre, music, and visual art in 2025. Perhaps her most famous song is Opheliac, which you can listen to on her YouTube channel.
Oddly enough, that next most view blog was something I used to do, Weekend Wise Words, which were rather popular. That was a particular Mother's Day blog. I never figured out why that one was so popular. Was just obvious why, it was an Emilie Autum blog? Maybe it was just the right time, right blog.
Emilie Autumn’s most famous and widely recognized song is generally considered to be “Opheliac” from her 2006 album of the same name.
It’s a driving, theatrical industrial-cabaret track that really encapsulates her style—razor-sharp lyrics, violin flourishes, and a mix of biting sarcasm with Victorian Gothic drama.
Other songs that are fan favorites and often cited alongside “Opheliac” include:
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“Marry Me” – a satirical waltz skewering traditional gender roles.
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“Thank God I’m Pretty” – biting commentary on beauty standards.
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“Fight Like a Girl” – the anthem of her Asylum for Wayward Victorian Girls era.
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“Girls! Girls! Girls!” – a raucous circus-themed feminist rally cry.
Here’s what’s often considered Emilie Autumn’s most iconic photograph—the one where she’s intensely focused on her electric violin, sporting her signature red hair, dramatic stage makeup, and a dark-cabaret aesthetic that perfectly captures her theatrical style and artistic persona.
For the Uninitiated: Who is Emilie Autumn?
If you’ve never crossed paths with her work, Emilie Autumn is an American classically trained violinist whose music fuses baroque flourishes, industrial beats, and dark cabaret theatrics. She burst into the alt-music scene in the early 2000s with her electric violin and sharp wit, cultivating a devoted “Plague Rat” fanbase that embraced her mix of Victorian Gothic aesthetics, mental health advocacy, and unapologetic feminist bite.
Her live shows were immersive spectacles—equal parts concert, burlesque, theatre, and rally—complete with corsets, feathers, teacups, and a fictional asylum backdrop populated by equally fictional but emotionally resonant characters. This “Asylum” became more than a stage prop—it was a symbol for survival, rebellion, and community for fans who often felt like outsiders.
Mental Health Advocacy & Positive Impact
Behind the feathers, corsets, and whip-smart humor, Emilie has always been open about her own struggles with mental illness—particularly bipolar disorder and her history with institutionalization. Her semi-autobiographical fantasy novel The Asylum for Wayward Victorian Girls doesn’t just build a fictional world—it openly grapples with real trauma, stigma, and survival.
For her fans, she has consistently championed messages of self-acceptance, resilience, and defiance in the face of a world that often marginalizes those who are different. Many Plague Rats credit her music, writing, and online presence with helping them feel less alone, inspiring them to embrace their individuality rather than hide it.
Where is That Fan Subculture Now?
In the 2008–2014 era, the Plague Rats were everywhere—Tumblr pages buzzing, fan art and cosplay filling conventions, setlists being dissected after every show. These days, the scene is quieter. Many fans have grown older, and life has scattered the community, but the core remains active in pockets on Reddit, Discord, and small private groups. While the massive waves of online fan activity have ebbed, the loyalty has not—Emilie still has a fiercely dedicated following who will likely show up in force if and when her next big project premieres.
What Emilie Autumn is Doing Now
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The Asylum for Wayward Victorian Girls — The Musical
Emilie’s most ambitious current project is a Broadway-bound stage adaptation of her bestselling semi-autobiographical fantasy novel The Asylum for Wayward Victorian Girls. Her own website and Instagram bio list “Making the musical” as her primary work right now. Several songs from the project have already been released, offering fans a taste of the production’s soundscape. -
Recent Music
After a long recording pause, she returned in 2021 with a harpsichord-driven cover of Iggy Pop’s “The Passenger.” In 2022, she followed with three singles—“We Have Instructions”, “Who’s a Little Leech?”, and “Portraits”—each tied to the evolving musical soundtrack. -
Visual Art
Emilie debuted new work at Art Basel, transforming real medical materials from her past into striking mixed-media pieces, each titled after one of her own lyrics—turning trauma into tangible beauty. -
Writing and Film
She recently published the short story “The Gown” and is working on stage plays and two film scripts, including a psychological fantasy thriller now in pre-production.
Looking Ahead
For fans, Emilie Autumn’s world has always been one part performance, one part personal mythology, and one part survival story. While the public side of her career is quieter than it was a decade ago, she is still working, still creating, and still shaping that strange and beautiful world where music, theatre, and personal history intertwine.
If The Asylum musical finally premieres—on Broadway or elsewhere—it may well spark a new wave of Plague Rats, both old and new, ready to step through the asylum gates once again.
For now, there is this on Apple Musical Classical: The Asylum For Wayward Victorian Girls: Behind the Musical.
Cheers! Sláinte! Na zdravie!
Compiled with aid of ChatGPT
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