Indie Sauce: How a Meme Account Led to a Community For Local Artists
Profile picture for Indie Sauce (@indiesauce)
If you’re interested in the Boston DIY scene, there is a very high chance you’re already following Indie Sauce (@indiesauce) on Instagram. With over 55,000 followers, Indie Sauce’s social media presence has created a platform to promote independent music artists through memes, Spotify playlists, sponsoring house shows, and intimate live sessions.
The owners of the account–who choose to stay anonymous–originally launched the account strictly as a meme page in 2018 to elevate artists. “I’m very particular about the memes that I make and that I find online. My TikTok is really weird, like my For You Page is so bizarre,” they chuckled.
They explained that the ideas for memes stem from educating themselves on indie rock music culture and keeping up with music news. “It’s all fun and games, like taking an idea and not making fun of it, but spinning it on its head and making it funny,” they said.
In February 2022, Indie Sauce officially gained traction as a platform for independent artists when they introduced “Indie Hourzz,” which are professionally recorded live performances that occur weekly in a cozy Boston apartment. Indie Hourzz began as a way to boost local artists through short performances that are posted onto YouTube and live-streamed on Instagram. “There’s talent everywhere, and I feel like a lot of it is [hidden]. The whole point of Indie Sauce, for me, is wanting to spotlight great musicians who aren’t in the spotlight,” they said.
Indie Sauce expressed that they always had the idea of implementing live performances, but finally decided to go for it once they settled into their new apartment. “I moved in and was like, ‘You know what, this could be a thing,’” they said. “I have knowledge in recording and once I got the drum set and figured out the space and the acoustics of the apartment, it took off from there.”
Behind the scenes, Indie Hourzz consists of a producer, director, sound engineer, and editor to ensure each performance is recorded in the highest quality possible. With a myriad of comfortable seating spots and burning incense, Indie Hourzz is dedicated to being a relaxing and memorable space for artists to promote their music to the public.
“It’s gradually gotten better since its beginning because I’ve invested more [energy and taken it more seriously with] the equipment and a sound engineer and understanding the space, and knowing how to record each instrument,” they said. “The quality of sound—in general—is better, and I know what my vision is and what I want to accomplish.”
Along with Indie Hourzz, Indie Sauce has supported local artists by organizing a house show lineup for the venue Brinstar. The lineup included Boston artists Bed Sweater, Champagne Charlie and the Wah Wahs, Christopher Normann, and Main Era. “I’ve found that I really love organizing and booking events and making sure the lineup flows well and that the trajectory of each sound makes sense,” Indie Sauce said.
Although a majority of their content revolves around alternative music and Boston artists, they stress that they are not limited to that genre and city. Indie Sauce plans to sponsor more events in places around the country such as New York and Los Angeles.
In the future, Indie Sauce hopes that independent artists who don’t have a following can rely on them to help push their music forward. “We want to be a platform in a community where independent artists can call family and rely on [us] for advice and lean on [us] when they need help, and booking and touring and whatever they want,” they said.