Following a period of devotion to experimental theatre as a teenager, Haino experimented with the medium of rock music and emerged in 1978 with the duo Fushitsusha. Over the next several decades, he would establish many other musical groups, including Aihiyo, Varja, and Sanhedolin.

Haino’s solo output has been just as extensive. The singer-songwriter and guitarist's eclecticism are both owed to and reflected by his wide pool of influences, among them medieval troubador music, Marlene Dietrich, Billie Holiday, Iannis Xenakis, Syd Barrett, and Blind Lemon Jefferson. Despite the »voraciously globe-swallowing« (according to RBMA) nature of his music, Haino’s creative impulses still have strong local ties to Japan; he is deeply influenced by both traditional Butoh dancing and »ma,« the Japanese musical concept of empty space and silence. He has collaborated with countless acts including indie rocker Faust, jazz saxophonist Peter Brötzmann, experimental musician Jim O’Rourke, and post-metal band Sumac.