FREENOTE was a Japanese rock band formed in April 2002 at Kansai University's music circle HumanBeing. The group began by playing live houses in Osaka and released the indie mini album 『風花』. In June 2003, it shifted to street performances on the 梅田歩道橋 in front of JR大阪駅. Word of mouth helped the self-sold CD-R of "終電マスター" sell more than 100 copies a day, and in the summer of 2003 the band was featured repeatedly on TV Asahi's 『THE STREET FIGHTERS』.
FREENOTE released the mini album 『終電マスター』 on December 3, 2003. It then made its major debut through TOY'S FACTORY on May 26, 2004 with "Kirai Tune (Hate Tune)", the ending theme for "Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo".
The band's early releases were rock-oriented and centered on 秦千香子's guitar-backed singing. From the third single "ウォークメン" onward, it incorporated programmed tracks and moved toward a more pop-oriented style. That shift became more pronounced after bassist 佐藤周作 left on September 30, 2005. From the fifth single "ピアノを弾いて" onward, 秦千香子 mainly performed with keyboard or piano.
FREENOTE released its first full album 『Introducing the popline according to FREENOTE』 on April 20, 2005. It followed with 『オトノハトライアングル』 on July 25, 2007, 『ルート3』 on September 24, 2008, and 『チョコレートボックスオーケストラ』 on September 16, 2009. Drummer 太田真豪 left on June 18, 2009. The band played its final live at 下北沢CLUB Que on August 25, 2013 before disbanding.
