Originally named after where Relly and Regie Mangubat lived, near Marikina, "The Markina Sound Machine", now named as Stonefree, they band started in 1995 after the Mangubat brothers decided to form a band and added Miro and Benson to the group, all hailing from UP Diliman. Contrary to what most people believe, Stonefree is not named after Jimi Hendrix's song but rather a selection made out of a list of other names. They also stress that the name Stonefree also connotes that rock bands need not the typical "rockstar" attitude to succeed.
During their college heydays in UP, they had regular gigs on local bars performing songs from their influences like Matchbox 20, Jars of Clay and Incubus to name a few. They also performed on events like the San Miguel Oktoberfest, NU Summer Shebang, Pulp Summer Slam, Winston Tour, Rockista, 99.5 RT Ripe Tomatoes, NU Rock Awards, and MTV Music Summit to name some. All of this in 2000 while they are still studying.
They got their break in 2002 after joining Monster Radio RX 93.1's band competition, The RX Band Breakout. Although they did not win, their single Listen became a hit and even became Monster Radio RX 93.1 OPM Song of the Year and placed #3 at 103.5 K-Lite's Yearend Countdown in 2003. The success of listen gave them the start they needed to self produce a 4-track EP in also entitled Listen on July 23, 2004. The singles from their EP became hits of their own, Listen was a theme on an ABC-5 TV show called Singles, Kapag Nawala Ka their second singles, gained radio success, too. Baka Naman and Listen where included in a couple of compilation CD's.
This success led them to a record deal under Warner Music Philippines where they released their debut album, Hibiscus, named after the street where their rehearsal studio is at, on August 19 of the same year. The album was produced by Louie Talan and mastered by Imago's Zach Lucero, with Rivermaya's Mark Escueta among their guest performers on their album. The album received success all over the nation as their singles Ikot and Sayang peaked at various radio countdowns in the Philippines with the latter nominated in the 19th Awit Awards for Best Performance by a New Group. Langit was also a part in the Pinoy Big Brother DVD. The album also received many praises, Magic 89.9 gave it a perfect rating boosting its sales.
Not only were they radio friendly, but they also got featured on different TV shows even before the release of their debut album. And their videos proved to have a lasting mark even on local music stations where they also received success on MYX Daily Countdown and MTV Diyes.
Following their success was the release of their sophomore album, DeLorean on the 17th of March, 2007. Anghel was their carrier single and also received success on both radio and local music channels.
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