MAXIMUM THE HORMONE was founded in 1998 in Hachiojo, a suburb of Tokyo. The original members were Daisuke, Nao, KEY and SUGI.
After a couple regional gigs, the band signed a contract with the indie label Sky Records and released their first album, A.S.A Crew. At that time Daisuke's lyrics and the band's name were written only in English. That changed when KEY and SUGI left the band in 1999.
While looking for new members, Nao thought of her younger brother Ryo, who had been playing the guitar since junior high school and could sing very well. From then on, the two men split up most of the vocals, with Daisuke taking care of the screaming and rapping, and Ryo the more melodic parts. With the addition of Ue on bass, the current line-up took shape. The band decided to switch to writing their lyrics and name in katakana to reflect this new era in their career.
In August 2000, the band released their first single Bullpen Catcher's Dream and, one year later, their first mini album Otori. However, their first real success came with the single ROLLING1000tOON, which was used as ending theme for the anime "Airmaster" in 2003.
In 2004, after the release of their fourth album, the band signed with the major label VAP. After some more or less successful releases, the quartet put out the single Koi no Mega Lover in 2006, hitting number nine on the Oricon Charts, a huge achievement for the band.
In February 2007, MAXIMUM THE HORMONE contributed What's up, People?! and Zetsubou Billy, the opening and ending theme respectively, to the anime "Death Note." Their contribution to the OST resulted in a huge popularity boost, and their album Buiiki kaesu went on to rank fourth in national sales, another huge success.
In January 2008 MAXIMUM THE HORMONE had their first overseas appearance, a short tour of North America in support of the Dropkick Murphys. They continued to expand their international fanbase that year with a UK tour alongside ENTER SHIKARI, an English post-hardcore band. They also received greater national exposure when they performed at the hide Memorial Summit where they were a huge hit. Their single Tsume Tsume Tsume went on to reach the number two spot on the Oricon Charts.
The band went on hiatus briefly at the end of 2008 to allow Daisuke to recover from throat surgery, but returned to touring in 2009. They went on to win the "Best Rock Video" award for Tsume Tsume Tsume at the MTV Video Music Awards as well that year.
In November, the band released a statement that Nao had become pregnant, but would continue to tour in spite of her condition. However, after she fell ill, it was decided that another short hiatus would be necessary. This forced the band to cancel many of the shows they had booked, including an appearance at the Soundwave Festival in Australia.
The band released another statement in May 2010, informing their fans that Nao had given birth to a baby girl, and that they would resume activities.
2011 proved to be one of the biggest years yet for MAXIMUM THE HORMONE, as their single Greatest the Hits 2011-2011 went on to debut at number one on the Oricon Charts. In June, they also headlined their first European tour in three years, appearing in France, Belgium and Germany, with the French hardcore band Tagada Jones as their support. While in Europe, they also had the chance to perform on the second main stage at France's Hellfest, a festival featuring some of the biggest names in metal music.
On July 31, 2013, MAXIMUM THE HORMONE released their first full-length album in six years, Yoshu fukushu.
