Aaron Steele

Mentioned in this August 2011 Modern Drummer blog post.

Now for the juicy stuff—gear, what everyone has been waiting for (or at least the drummers as geeky as me). For most of my gigs I use different setups in order to get the best sounds for the song, including 1960s Sonor beechwoods (13″, 16″, 20″), 1971 Ludwig three-ply maples (13″, 16″, 22″), 1970s Camco maples (14″, 20″, 24″), and 1970s Gretsches (13″, 16″, 22″). I’m getting a C&C luan mahogany kit so I can keep my Vintage kits at home or in the studio (12″, 15″, 18″ toms, 20″ and 24″ kicks). By the way, if you haven’t checked out C&C Drums www.candccustomdrums.com, please do, because they are amazing. My main snares are a 10×14 1964 Leedy wood, a 5×14 Black Beauty copy by Precision Drums, a 5×14 Ludwig Acrolite, and my favorite, a 4×14 C&C MPM. I have a few more but I use these the most. Thanks to the great people at Istanbul www.istanbulcymbals.com I have a couple of awesome setups for cymbals as well. On the East Coast I use 15″ Special Edition hats, a 22″ Mel Lewis Ride as a crash, and a 22″ Traditional Dark ride. On the West Coast I use 15″ Xsist Brilliant hats, a 22″ Xsist Brilliant crash, and a 24″ Xsist Natural ride. To bang all that I use Silverfox www.silverfoxpercussion.com drumsticks because they last an extremely long time.

Featured in this May 18, 2021 Instagram post.

I have to say this @nobleandcooley alloy classic snare has quickly become one of my favorite drums. I’ve basically used it on everything I’ve recorded on (since I’ve had it), most gigs (what little I’ve had in these times) and just messing around. It’s probably one of the most versatile instruments I’ve ever played. It’s not about the gear, but sometimes you just have to give credit to where it’s deserved.