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Converge is an American hardcore band that formed in 1990. The band was originally a four-piece outfit comprised of guitarist Kurt Ballou, vocalist Jacob Bannon, drummer Damon Bellorado and bassist Jeff Feinburg. Erik Ralston is also credited with playing bass on some of Converge's early songs that were later compiled on Caring and Killing. In 1994, the band became a five piece when it recruited Aaron Dalbec as a second guitarist. Feinburg departed in 1997 and was replaced by Stephen Brodsky of Cave In briefly for the album When Forever Comes Crashing and supporting tours. In 1999, Converge released the split album The Poacher Diaries with new members John DiGiorgio on drums and Nate Newton on bass. DiGiorgio was quickly replaced by Ben Koller before the release of Jane Doe in 2001.

After the release of Jane Doe, Dalbec stepped down as the second guitarist and Converge continued on as a four-piece band. Converge signed to Epitaph Records and has maintained the same lineup of Ballou, Bannon, Koller and Newton for all releases through the label to date: You Fail Me (2004), No Heroes (2006), Axe to Fall (2009) and All We Love We Leave Behind (2012). Bannon has described this lineup as the definitive lineup and stated that the band likely wouldn't continue if it were to change.

Converge also invite some of their friends and tourmates to collaborate on songs

Current members

Name	Years active	Primary instrument	Notes	Related bands
Kurt Ballou	1990–present	Guitar		Blue/Green Heart, Kid Kilowatt, The Huguenots
Jacob Bannon	1990–present	Vocals		Irons, Supermachiner, Wear Your Wounds
Nate Newton	1999–present	Bass	Nate Newton originally joined Converge in 1999 as a part-time member while his main focus at the time was Jesuit. The first album he performed on was the split album The Poacher Diaries. After Jesuit broke up, Newton became a full-time member of Converge, and the first album he contributed significantly to the writing process was Jane Doe. On the side, Newton also joined Aaron Turner's and Old Man Gloom and later formed Doomriders.	Channel, Jesuit, Old Man Gloom, Doomriders
Ben Koller	1999–present	Drums	One of Ben Koller's earlier bands included the indie rock band Blue/Green Heart, which also featured Converge member Kurt Ballou. Ballou invited Koller to just play one live show for Converge, but later became a full-time member. On 2012's All We Love We Leave Behind, Koller incorporated more double bass drumming—a common element in heavy music—than on previous Converge albums. He partially attributed this to not being very good at the technique in the past, and practicing it with his side project All Pigs Must Die. Koller is also a member of Acid Tiger, briefly played with Cave In and is a rumored to be a member of United Nations.	Force Fed Glass, Blue/Green Heart, Acid Tiger, All Pigs Must Die, United Nations, Bastian

Former members

Name	Years active	Primary instrument	Notes	Related bands
Jeff Feinburg	1990–1997	Bass		Ire?
Stephen Brodsky	1997–1998	Bass		Cave In, Kid Kilowatt, New Idea Society, Pet Genius
Damon Bellorado	1990–1999	Drums	Damon Bellorado was the original drummer for Converge. Bellorado's main contributions include early demos, Halo in a Haystack, Petitioning the Empty Sky and When Forever Comes Crashing. In 1994, he formed the side project Bane with other Converge member Aaron Dalbec. Bellorado left Converge in 1999.	Bane
John DiGiorgio	1999	Drums	The Poacher Diaries	The End of the Universe, Canephora
Aaron Dalbec	1994–2001	Guitar	Aaron Dalbec joined Converge in 1994 as a second guitarist, which transformed the band from a four-piece to a five-piece. Dalbec's contributions include select tracks on Petitioning the Empty Sky, When Forever Comes Crashing and Jane Doe. He also formed Bane as a side project with other Converge member Damon Bellorado in 1994. He left Converge shortly after the release of Jane Doe in 2001. According to Bannon, Dalbec was asked to leave the band because he was too busy with his record label (Life Recording Company), his personal life and Bane that he didn't have enough time for Converge anymore. His contributions to Bane were also truer to traditional hardcore while, at the time, Converge was becoming more experimental. Dalbec was never replaced and Converge continued on as four-piece. He would also go on to play with Only Crime and Velocity Engine.	Bane, Only Crime, Velocity Engine

• John DiGiorgio – drums (1999) was in The End Of The Universe and Sarah Carter and the Pretty Ponies, Canephora (only on The Poacher Diaries?)
• Erik Ralston – bass guitar (1993)

Frequent collaborators

Name	Years active	Instrument	Notes	Related bands

• Tre McCarthy: When Forever Comes Crashing, Jane Doe
• Kevin Baker: Jane Doe, No Heroes, Converge / Napalm Death
• John-Robert Conners: No Heroes, Axe to Fall
• Adam McGrath: No Heroes, Axe to Fall
• Matt Pike: When Forever Comes Crashing, The Poacher Diaries, "Downpour"

Table thing

Converge lineups
The left column lists releases recorded by each lineup (excluding compilation albums).

1991–1994 Halo in a Haystack	Kurt Ballou – guitar Jacob Bannon – vocals Damon Bellorado – drums Jeff Feinburg – bass guitar
1995–1996 Petitioning the Empty Sky	Kurt Ballou – guitar Jacob Bannon – vocals Aaron Dalbec – guitars Damon Bellorado – drums Jeff Feinburg – bass guitar
1997–1998 When Forever Comes Crashing	Kurt Ballou – guitar Jacob Bannon – vocals Aaron Dalbec – guitars Damon Bellorado – drums Stephen Brodsky – bass guitar
1999 The Poacher Diaries	Kurt Ballou – guitar Jacob Bannon – vocals Aaron Dalbec – guitars John Digiorgio – drums Nate Newton – bass guitar
2000–2001 Deeper the Wound Jane Doe	Kurt Ballou – guitar Jacob Bannon – vocals Aaron Dalbec – guitars Nate Newton – bass guitar, vocals Ben Koller – drums
2001–present You Fail Me No Heroes Axe to Fall All We Love We Leave Behind	Kurt Ballou – guitar Jacob Bannon – vocals Nate Newton – bass guitar, vocals Ben Koller – drums

Timeline