City Slang: rooted in Indie Rock

Founded in 1990 by Christof Ellinghaus, City Slang was born out of a love for American indie rock. Initially created to release The Flaming Lips’ In A Priest Driven Ambulance for the European market, the Berlin-based label quickly became a home for many iconic American bands, including Yo La Tengo, The Lemonheads, and Courtney Love’s band Hole. In its early years, City Slang built its reputation by offering European audiences access to some of the most influential indie and alternative acts from the U.S.

Over the past three decades, City Slang has significantly expanded, now covering a wide range of genres: from Caribou to José González and SPRINTS, the label has continuously pushed musical boundaries while remaining true to its indie roots.

Christof Ellinghaus started as a booking agent for Sweatshop Booking Agency, managing European tours for American bands, such as Nirvana or Mudhoney in 1989. When The Flaming Lips approached him for help distributing their music in Europe, it was the spark that ignited the label. Christof released their fourth album In A Priest Driven Ambulance (With Silver Sunshine Stares), and news of the creation of a new European distributor quickly spread within alternative music circles.

By embracing bands like Sebadoh, Built to Spill, and Boss Hog, the label quickly established itself as a key player. City Slang’s European releases of Hole’s Pretty on the Inside in 1991 and Yo La Tengo’s May I Sing with Me positioned the label at the cutting edge of indie music.

City Slang quickly became synonymous with musical innovation: the signing of Tortoise, whose first two records helped define the post-rock genre, marked a turning point, allowing the label to branch out into more avant-garde sounds. Established as a tastemaker for fans of alternative music, mixing rock, country, electronic, and ambient genres, City Slang shaped the musical landscape in Europe.

As City Slang celebrates over 30 years of supporting independent music, the label remains dedicated to promoting originality and artistic integrity. This ethos, combined with IDOL’s marketing and distribution prowess, sets the stage for continued success as City Slang’s artists navigate the complexities of the modern music industry. This partnership reflects the resilience of the independent music scene, proving that, in an increasingly digital world, creativity and passion remain at the heart of musical success.

Pascal Bittard, Founder and President of IDOL said: “IDOL is delighted to partner with City Slang, a label that has not only built such a critically acclaimed roster over the years, but has continued to evolve and innovate, and is now one of the global standard-bearers of indie pop. We look forward to working closely together to apply our expertise, services and tools to building the careers of its many exceptional artists.”

Christof Ellinghaus, Founder of City Slang added: “IDOL’s audience development and marketing prowess is truly impressive, making this partnership the logical next step for City Slang. We look forward to working together to optimise our international campaigns and deliver the best results for our artists.”

Marit Posch, General Manager Germany : “As a Berliner having worked in the music industry for more than 20 years, I have been following City Slang and their releases for a very long time and have always appreciated their taste in music and how they run their label – indie to the core and always with a global approach. I am very happy to have been part of the signing process and working with them on their releases and am confident that we’ll create a lot of synergies to develop the label’s roster and success even further.”

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