Over their career, they have found success incorporating elements of heavy metal, hardcore punk, hip hop, pop, funk, and ska into their sound.

[3][8] Maximum the Hormone was formed in March 1997 by vocalist Daisuke-han, guitarist Key-yan, bassist Sugi and drummer Nao, initially as a cover band of the High-Lows as part of the member's university's light music club.

In January 1999, Nao's younger brother Maximum the Ryokun joined the band, as he had played guitar since junior high-school and could also sing.

[10] "Hormone" (or horumon) is a style of yakiniku (Japanese BBQ) where many of the typically discarded internal organs are grilled in bite sized pieces and eaten.

The concept is illustrated at the end of the music video, when the protagonist (bassist Ue-chang) fells the bully character by leaping into the air, doing several mid-air flips, then landing the final blow.

In 2006 the band entered popular culture with the song "Koi no Mega Lover", which reached number nine on the Oricon charts during the summer – their first top-ten hit in Japan.

On October 27, Maximum The Hormone made their first appearance in the United Kingdom, supporting Enter Shikari at the Bournemouth BIC.

They continued to tour with Enter Shikari until November 3, playing venues in Exeter, Southampton and Folkestone, before ending with two nights at the London Astoria.

However, prior to the Enter Shikari dates, it was announced that Daisuke would require corrective surgery on his throat, causing the band to go on temporary hiatus while he recovered.

This resulted in the band going on hiatus until Nao carried the baby to term, forcing them to cancel all shows including an appearance at the Soundwave Festival 2010 in Australia.

On May 6, 2010, the band released a statement through their website stating that Nao gave birth to a healthy baby girl and that they would no longer be on hiatus.

On February 7, 2011, the band released a video for the songs "Chiisana Kimi no Te (小さな君の手)" (Your Little Hands) and "Maximum the Hormone" on their official website.

According to the band's official website, it is "A frantic 156-page book with 'Our Merciless Home'war'k' descriptions, a dialogue style track-by-track rundown for all 15 songs by Maximum the Ryokun, Ryokun's inner world is exposed by professional manga artists"[16] On June 2, the group released the video for the song "A-L-I-E-N", but as a prank, they placed it on a randomly relocating URL, so page visitors would only have one chance of seeing the video.

As referenced in the song's lyrics, as well as their FAQ, he exclusively wears toilet sandals sold under the brand name VIC, made by Nishibe Chemical Co. Ltd.

[18] In September, the band announced a special merchandise package, including a T-shirt and limited edition VIC sandals with the Maximum the Hormone logo stamped on the heel.

In September 2018, the band released a track entitled "Haikei VAP-dono" (with Daisuke playing drums), to announce their departure from VAP to sign a new record deal with Warner Music Japan.

[21] In November 2018, they released a music video for "Korekara no Menkata Kotteri no Hanashi wo Shiyou", which commented on fans' negative response to Maximum the Ryokun's dramatic weight loss.

[23] On May 5, 2019, the band made a surprise appearance at the Viva La Rock 2019 festival, announcing that they would resume live performances and launch a June 2019 tour of Japan.

AllMusic's Alexey Eremenko writes that Maximum the Hormone is distinguished by "a general lack of the teenage angst and self-importance characteristic of true nu-metalers."