Down the hole of lowlands rock n’ roll: An interview with Bone of The Anomalys

Ben Franklin’s quote on death and taxes being life’s only certainties remains uncontested. But what about change? Directly or indirectly, everyone is subject to it, whether personal, environmental, or both. Bjørn Besemer has seen his share of change throughout life, especially in his native Amsterdam, where as of 2023, in a town hovering on the brink of a million inhabitants, the asylum seekers, young workforce, and local population endure one of Europe’s most challenging housing markets. But he’s only Bjørn to the Dutch parliament; to the rest of us, he’s known as Bone, and this lanky, blonde Dutchman is a veteran of the city’s alternative history and burgeoning punk and garage rock n’ roll world. 

Being a rock n’ roll lifer means Bone’s seen the various venues and bands of the city come and go due to changing socioeconomics. That has yet to deter him from being able to find some stability in making ends meet as an illustrator and making music in a genre that’s as pigeonholed as garage rock. You’ve likely noticed his images of underground comic stylings across posters for bars like Pacific Parc, Checkpoint Charlie, OCCII, Café Soundgarden, Café De Figuranten, Café de Koe, and The New Anita, among others.  During the evening, he’s found DJ’ing these establishments or performing locally or touring around parts of Europe under the guise of a fuzzy, cyclopean shaft-shaped alien in The Sex Organs and on the drums for Nederbeat rockers Panter. But his long-standing project, The Anomalys, is his anchor, with tours beyond Europe and across North and South America, into Turkey, and through Australia under their belt. In September, The Anomalys released their new album, Down The Hole, through Slovenly Recordings, and to coincide with the release, Bone speaks about his time traversing the Dutch underground and the changes he’s noticed within his city along the way. 

How would you describe the life you’ve made for yourself and maintained by being a lifer in such a niche music scene as the garage punk world? 
Apart from the sweat and tears, it’s a lot of fun! A great aspect of being in a niche scene is that most people involved are very dedicated to the cause, and it truly is a little community. Over the years, many bands have slept at my squats, trailers, and homes and awakened to breakfast to help with their hangover. They’re very grateful for gestures like this; I know I am to everyone who lodged and fed me on the road. Gestures like these go far and make for a lot of friends around the world. 

Ironically, I make more money spinning my own music than performing it live

How much has Amsterdam’s changing socioeconomics over the last decade affected your ability to make a living and stay afloat in this city? Have there been any notable businesses you and the city’s other rock n’ roll lifers often frequented that had to close shop or move out of town due to rent increases?
Rock n’ roll has never been an easy business, even when closing times and decibel laws were nonexistent here. In hindsight, that was during Amsterdam’s golden era because of the city’s sheer number of venues, musicians, and bands. That’s no longer the case, but many bars have installed DJ booths, which helps keep me afloat. Ironically, I make more money spinning my own music than performing it live, and who knows how these establishments will get paid if everybody quits drinking! But life is cyclical. There will always be a new generation picking up the guitar and cranking “Louie Louie” and re-inventing the wheel again. 

Part of the city’s gentrification includes selling social housing to the private sector and long wait lists before a rent-controlled apartment becomes available. Has any of this affected your neighborhood or you directly? 
It’s colossally affected all of Amsterdam, where I barely recognize the city. Suppose you were born here now; finding a place to live after leaving your family home has become impossible. I’m part of the last generation that could still find social housing in the middle of the city, after being on an 18-year waiting list, of course. My neighborhood, the WG terrain, still has many alternative housing and businesses, but all around me is becoming referred to as the “gold” West instead of the old West. That’s ironic because I was born here when the neighborhood was a poor, working-class part of the city. 

Even though squatting is now a criminal offense as of 2010, that doesn’t seem to have eradicated people taking over abandoned housing these days. What differences have you noticed about squatters today compared to the ones you grew up around during the 1980s? What common factor do you feel links the two different generations? 
The squat movement was huge in the 1980s through the 90s, which is more the era I was involved in. Before then, I lived in trailer parks as a “stadsnomade.” The point of squatting is having an affordable place to live, which would be the common factor for today’s movement. However, society has changed, making it hard to summarize the differences between today’s movement and back then. I’ll put it like this: now I walk into a squat and see 3-D printers, haha, while for ten years, I was busy chopping wood for the heater and playing my records on a 1970s battery-powered record player.

Let’s get to the rock. Each band you form or participate in, harnesses a different side of you, whether your personality or your emotions. The songwriting of The Anomalys harbors the most aggressive sound of your work, almost like you use the band as an outlet for all your negative feelings. Do you treat each band as a therapy to relieve different feelings?
Not at all; I started The Anomalys to prevent myself from smashing my head through a window. The Sex Organs is like a conceptual band for being stupid, having fun, and teaching other people about all things sex-related. Then there are the bluegrass bands that are all about making music together and harmonizing. Or Panter, which is more like a cover band but with its own style.

Down The Hole is a furious album, more so than Glitch, with song titles reflecting drug use, isolation, and mental instability. Outside of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, can you share any other events in your life that helped fuel the record’s songwriting? 
We decided to go back to the more angry style-Anomalys. Musically, the style on this record is more agropunk than garage rock n’ roll, and the songs are about different kinds of frustrations in life. About places shutting down, waking up at 7:00 due to construction work after you worked all night, the loss of innocence, never getting paid enough, etc. It’s really for my mental health that l let it out in this way. The Anomalys are always walking a thin line between completely losing it and keeping our shit together. 

The Anomalys are always walking a thin line between completely losing it and keeping our shit together

How’s the progress on your illustration book going? Can you give us some background on what motivated you to compile and release this?
I’ve been organizing gigs for the last 30 years and designed the posters for most. That’s almost 400 posters and, therefore, quite a good insight into what happened here over those three decades in garage punk music. Of course, there have been many other promoters, but it’s quite a big chunk of history. The book is all hand-drawn, which makes it a piece of art in itself.  

What’s the most important life lesson you’ve learned so far, something you wish you knew much earlier on and, if you could, go back and tell your younger self?
Become very good at what you like the most so you never have to work in anything else and then get self-employed as soon as possible. If you want to go places, only start bands with people who want to “live” music. 

Who are five new bands (not your own) that you strongly suggest we check out?
The Scaners, Prison Affair, Private Function, Killer Kin, Floyd Hemorrhoid.

Tell us what activity we can expect from The Anomalys to conclude 2024 and enter 2025. 
An upcoming EP will feature new songs, and in February 2025, we will tour northern Europe for a couple of weeks. That same year marks 20 years of The Anomalys roaming the Earth, too, so there is definitely going to be a special release to celebrate that. Stay tuned!

Down The Hole is available through Slovenly Recordings, and The Anomalys can be followed on Instagram. The rent is still too damn high!