The name is the manifesto. PaleNeØ joins paleo, the ancient, with neo, the new — and the band’s sound does the same, pairing the authentic weight of classic hard rock with a modern loud-rock edge.
Built From Cover Videos
PaleNeØ formed in Tokyo in April 2023. Bassist YONA wanted a hard rock girls’ band and went looking for members the way a musician of this generation would: through social media and YouTube cover videos, finding players whose direction matched her own. The result was a four-piece of Hohomi on vocals, AYARI and REOTO on guitars, and YONA on bass.
The speed of what followed is striking. The first digital single, “PANORAMA,” arrived in June 2023, just two months after the band formed. “Skizoid” followed in October and “aLiVE” in December — and the music video for “aLiVE” passed 110,000 views on YouTube within two weeks.
From Antiknock to a National Tour
In June 2024 the band celebrated its first anniversary with a full house at Shinjuku ANTIKNOCK, one of Tokyo’s key basement rooms (our guide to the venue is here). A limited mini-album, ØCTAVE, was sold at shows and by mail order.
The official debut came on 4 December 2024 with the first full album, SCØRE, on VAA Records, and a first national tour followed from March 2025. That’s a debut album and a national tour inside two years of formation — a trajectory most bands can only dream of.
Where to Start
SCØRE is the complete statement. But “aLiVE” is the song that first carried the band beyond its own circle, and it’s the quickest way to hear the paleo-and-neo balance the name promises: classic hard rock drive, modern punch.
