Off The Record hit their 60th with a mix from a true modern day selector.
A mix that was sent to us from long time manager of Phonica, the dearly missed late Nick Williams – Muriel De Bros a.k.a Princess P gives us an hour and a half of genre-blurring, deep dug and beautifully blended magnificence. For decades Princess P has been a cornerstone of underground culture out of Switzerland – from cutting her teeth behind the counter at Basel’s seminal Plattfon Records and running her own events, to shaping soundtracks for club nights and stages at Zukunft in Zürich, Elysia in Basel, Kauz, Kapitel Bollwerk and Beyond, including standout sets at the Watching Trees Festival that have opened doors and hearts alike – a journey she herself describes as life-saving in its intensity. Renowned for her deft, expansive selections that move effortlessly between house, techno, IDM and beyond, Muriel’s curatorial voice extends far beyond the booth, most recently through her lovingly assembled Infinite Sonore compilation on her own Princess imprint, a sub-label of Mental Groove, where deep listening and emotional resonance take centre stage. This mix mirrors that same spirit – less concerned with tight club transitions and more with atmosphere, memory and musical moments that don’t always survive a dancefloor, pulled from dusty crates, rediscovered collections and a lifetime of careful listening.
We had a brief chat with Muriel about the mix and what she has coming up this year:
Hey Muriel, thanks for joining us! Can you tell us about your mix and what the idea behind it was?
I always feel a little lost to record a “dance mix“ at home. It somehow feels strange to mix for myself alone in my studio. Thats why i probably changed after one hour and broke it down with a song. Also the mixing is different, less focused on tight transition. I tried to include tracks that are normally too difficult to drop in a club situation, where people drink, chat and want to have fun. I included some older tracks that I recently found in the collection of a former record store. But also tracks from the past I still enjoy and maybe 2-3 newer ones. There is probably a few crackles, as these are older records.
What are your preferred methods for finding new music—do you still enjoy digging around in dusty crates, or do you prefer to buy online?
Definitely the combination but somehow I still prefer the physical shops. There is one in Zürich called “Format“ Records. If I find the time, I pay them a visit. They have a small but excellent selection. It’s nice to have a conversation or to get recommendations. The owner knows my taste and always shows me new pearls. I try to listen to the news lists of online stores or of my Bandcamp subscriptions. I am listening a lot of radio shows as well. There are so many extremely well-curated shows, incl the tracklists. This is truly such a gift. Lately I worked on putting together the tracklist for my compilation “Infinite Sonore“ that was released earlier this year on my own label “Princess“, a sublabel of Swiss label “Mental Groove“. For this I dug out a lot of older music in my collection. As well as at my workplace, where I browse through numerous collections for our Discogs shop.
What are five records you couldn’t live without?
Primal Scream – Screamadelica
Antonio Carlos Jobim – Wave
De La Soul – 3 Feet High And Rising
Global Communication – 76:14
Saint Etienne – Foxbase Alpha
What has been one of your most memorable sets over your career?
That must be “Watching Trees“ Festival September 2022 in the Forest Of Dean. A small festival launched by Optimo & Ransom Note. It opened many doors for me, it somehow saved my life.
What do you have up your sleeve for 2026?
Aside from my monthly show for Mutant Radio Tibilisi, I’m gonna start a second new monthly radio show, tbc. And we are working on a follow-up for “Infinite Sonore“ compilation with a guest curation. And I’m also looking forward to my first gig in Scotland April 2026.
Thanks Muriel 🙂
