Sophie Burrell picks playing feel over speed: “I’d rather sound more like David Gilmour”

Sophie Burrell has said that she prioritises feel over speed in her playing – adding that while admires shredders, she’d much rather sound like David Gilmour.

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The popular social media guitarist made the comments in an interview with Guitar World yesterday (28 February), in which she discussed her musical influences, gear preferences and new project, Bxrrell.

It was here that Burrell shared her admiration for David Gilmour, and explained how the Pink Floyd guitarist has shaped her style:

“I was raised on Pink Floyd, [but] in my teenage years, Mark Tremonti and Slash were my biggest heroes – I was playing their stuff all the time,” she said. “I didn’t try my hand at Pink Floyd stuff until 2020;  it felt quite natural for me to play that stuff. I reckon that’s because it’s all I heard when I was a child.”

She continued:

“There are other players whose solos require way more time and attention for me to learn. [… but] with David Gilmour it always makes perfect sense. He’s influenced me tremendously in my subconscious. I didn’t even realize it! I’m very grateful for that because he’s an absolute genius.”

Elsewhere in the interview, Burrell explained how this love of the musician has led to her placing less emphasis on speed, something that she often felt insecure about:

“I often beat myself for not being as good at certain things as I should be… but it’s important to remember you aren’t those players, which isn’t a bad thing. You might not be as fast as someone else, but that’s fine,” she said.

“I don’t care too much about speed and when I do, it’s in short bursts. Even though it’s very impressive, it’s not really for me. I’d rather sound more like David Gilmour and play with feel.”