Branden Steineckert - Biography

Biography

Branden was born in Pocatello, Idaho and was raised in a Mormon family which moved more than twenty times during his youth. He picked up skateboarding at an early age due to the fact his friends skated. When Branden was 11 years old, his father, Neil Steineckert, committed suicide, so he picked up drumming as a way to release his anger and to relieve him of his troubles.

Branden learned to play the drums because his late father had played drums at around his age. He was a founding member of Strange Itch, a band that would later become The Used, and would go on to achieve success, earning a platinum album.

On November 3, 2006, it was announced that Branden would be playing drums for Rancid until the end of their tour. He replaced their drummer of 15 years, Brett Reed. On the tour, Rancid members stated that Branden would be a permanent addition to the band (also noted on the official Used fansite). In the August 2009 issue of DRUM! Magazine, Steineckert commented on how quickly things moved as soon as he began to play with Rancid: “It was nuts. My first show, I was playing songs I’d never played even on a drum set, in front of 2,500 kids in England.” Branden's first recording with the band was their 2009 album Let the Dominoes Fall, despite the fact that it had been in the writing process since 2005, only a year before he joined.

In late 2010 Branden filled in for Goldfingers' drummer (Darrin Pfeiffer) for a few west coast shows due to prior arrangements.

Branden is an avid soccer fan and supporter of Major League Soccer team Real Salt Lake with whom he is a season ticket holder and writer of the official team chant 'Believe'.