HANABIE. call what they do Harajuku-core, after Tokyo's youth culture and fashion district: metalcore and groove metal crossed with hyperpop and vocaloid. Vocalist Yukina, guitarist and vocalist Matsuri and bassist Hettsu met at an all-girls junior school, where they started out covering Maximum the Hormone songs in music class. Chika plays drums. The debut album, Girl's Reform Manifest, came out in 2021, with Reborn Superstar! following in 2023.
That was also the year they first played outside Japan, and their U.S. debut included Louder Than Life and Aftershock, two of Sonic Temple's sister festivals. Revolver noted they'd been championed by Limp Bizkit, Slash and Bring Me the Horizon. The five-track HOT TOPIC EP arrived January 28, 2026, opening with "ICONIC," a few months after they played Wacken Open Air in 2025.