Lexie Carroll - from scrapbooks to UK headline tours

Hailing from London, Lexie by most means is your typical 19 year old university student; aside from the small matter of her being a UK headlining tour artist (coming to a city near you this autumn). 

Already boasting an impressive discography with the likes of ‘Violet’ (a personal favourite), ‘Tomorrow’ and ‘Slow Lane’ with Alfie Jukes; Lexie’s recent release of her EP ‘you look lovely when you’re living’ marks an impressive step forward in her production, lyricism and overall sound.

Leading with singles such as ‘it’s been a while’, ‘we never made it to glasgow’ and ‘laundry detergent’, which all feature music videos from the cinema masterminds at Big Tent Films. Perhaps the biggest surprise of the EP, has been how much the first track ‘sunflood’ has stolen the show...

Already racking up half a million streams on Spotify, the song’s melody is reminiscent of Porter Robinson’s Nurture album blended with the translucence of the 1975’s “Jesus Christ 2005 God Bless America”. Mixed with Lexie’s marquee ethereal vocals, ‘sunflood’ perfectly encapsulates the nostalgia of laying on the grass and watching the clouds pass by on a warm summer’s day when you were younger. 

Featuring a title-drop, ‘sunflood’ quintessentially captures what Lexie’s music and this EP is all about - hope. In fact, when it came to what sort of response she wanted the audience to have to this current EP, Lexie said:

“I wanted it to be quite a hopeful EP, I’ve written quite a few sad songs in the past but overall I’m quite an optimistic person so I wanted it to reflect that.

So hopefully people listen to it and think they can take the good whilst they can sort of thing”

For first time listeners, influences from the Japanese House, Clairo, Boygenius and increasingly more indie rock elements can all be seen in Lexie’s music. Alongside that, shades of Dodie, early Maisie Peters in ‘Dressed to Nice for a Jacket’ and Holly Humberstone are ever present in the more somber songs that she produces too.

Having said that, Lexie certainly doesn’t just listen to songs within her niche. Not only does that reflect in her ever expanding range of sound, but also by her rather rogue shoutouts in our interview to not only the brilliant Jack Antonoff and Bleachers; but also to the likes of Lady Gaga and Stevie Wonder too.

Personally, that is what has particularly intrigued me to Lexie’s music since I first discovered her song ‘Violet’ last year, is that it has consistently positively surprised me in which direction it has gone in. All the while she has carved a very distinctive sound that has clearly been honed from years of experience.

Starting as a kid copying her favourite youtubers like Dodie and Cavetown, Lexie started posting guitar videos on Youtube when she was as young as 13. By her own admission a “very strange child” who “formed [their] personality from watching Youtube as a child”, Lexie posted her songs as a “massive fangirl” inspired by the Brighton-based UK Youtube music scene that seemingly had huge online cultural influence in their 2012-2018 heyday. 

But whilst she was having fun posting these videos with no external goal in mind; she wasn’t only discovered by her manager but she had also built up years of songwriting practice that has undoubtedly paid off in her later work.

In a similar vein to Holly Humberstone, most of Lexie’s lyrics start from her journals. However, the difference is that Lexie explicitly puts her scrapbook style of journaling into her aesthetic style as an artist. Handcrafting her album artwork, single covers and tour posters, Lexie’s distinctive style stretches beyond her music to create a down-to-earth DIY style which is the epitome of what ‘indie’ should be.

That being said, Lexie has begun to get wider industrial backing with not only her sold-out UK headline tour set to start later this year, but also her scheduled performances at Ynot and Truck Festivals this summer and her support slot on James Marriott’s two-part UK tour earlier this year.

Speaking of that experience, Lexie said that: “it really was the perfect first tour experience” that she feels like she’s been absolutely “spoilt” with how lovely the whole James Marriott band and crew were, not to mention the fans… 

“As a support act you really can’t expect anything as people aren’t there for you, but the crowds were crazy and it was so surreal to hear people singing your songs”

As she embarks on her own tour later this year, it’s easy to get caught up in the hype and see the new heights of stardom that Lexie will inevitably reach. But as much as her talent deserves it, one of the most endearing parts of Lexie as an artist is how despite all the eyes on her, she is still fundamentally an ordinary university student at heart. 

For her next project, which is currently in the works (with a potential song release coming soon); Lexie’s focus has been around her first year at university. The late nights revising, the even later nights drinking; meeting new friends and moving out - are all some of the themes that feature in this next project, as it’s been crafted as a time capsule for that chaotic and wonderful time that is first year university.

So far Lexie’s music has all been about the trials and tribulations of growing up, particularly in this past EP with songs like ‘evelyn’ being written when she was 15 compared to ‘we never made it to glasgow’ only being a few months old. 

Although this next era is set to be more cohesive and focused on a year-long writing process, Lexie’s development as an artist so far has indicated that she will never lose that distinct self-starter magic that kick-started her career as a musician.

Listen to Lexie's current EP 'you look lovely when you're living' on all platforms:

All rights reserved to Lexie Carroll and Olivia Sofia Ferrara for images and videos

Words by Evan Johnson-Charteris