Hardcore fans will also know Adam as the guitarist of alternative rock duo Kubik, which hasn’t released an album in years but has built itself a respectable reputation.

But apart from that and his band merchandise business, not much has been heard of Adam.

So it comes as a pleasant surprise to see the unexpected release of Re:construction, a collection of Vlad Vamp remixes of songs by bands, most of whom are peers of his.

An accidental project of sorts, Re:construction came after a planned collaboration between the musician and independent clothing line Maternal Disaster from Bandung. The brand had asked to collaborate with Adam on something — anything. The initial idea was to work on an official vest, the kind that Adam had often worn onstage with Koil — a merchandise concept that would be an easy sell for the band’s legions of dedicated fans.

The planned collaboration never materialized for unclear reasons, and Adam and the clothing line began to work on a more traditional T-shirt line. But instead of simply working on a series of T-shirts, Adam began thinking that it should be paired with something.

“I then thought about the collection of remixes I had compiled between 2002 and 2016,” Adam    explains.

And so, Re:construction was born, officially as a collaboration between Maternal Disaster and Adam’s own Disaster Records.

The cover, which has a painting of Adam in his Vlad Vamp character, portrays the electro-goth nature of the album.

“I had my favorite illustrator, Morgg from the band Rajasinga, paint it,” he said.

Having amassed a large network of friends throughout his career, it was not hard to compile the many remixes for fellow musicians he had done throughout his career.

“All of the remixes I have done were based on my love for the original song, and all the bands that I did the remixes for were very supportive of this project,” he says, “so it was not hard at all to compile the master tracks and individual tracks that I needed to work on the remixes.”

Although he did many more remixes than the ones that ended up on the album, those that made it in were chosen because they made sense together as an album.

“I wanted the record, even though it is a remix album, to have a continuous flow.”

Adam adds that the remixes he had made even earlier, between 1996 and 2002, were lost to time.

He felt that working on remixes was like solving puzzles.

“You’re given these pieces of music and you’re like, ‘How can I create something great out of this?’.”

Uniquely, Adam never changes the songs from their original tempo; instead he focuses on creating a completely different feel from the original song. Often, he even utilizes only the original song’s vocal and bass lines.

“Sometimes I only need those elements to come up with the basic sketch — it’s almost like writing a new song,” Adam says.

Though he has issued limited edition releases under various name, this is his first under the Vlad Vamp guise.

Things have come a long way, technically especially, since Adam first worked on remixes. His 90s remix of a Koil track used only a 4-track recorder, loop and drum machine. But he has acquired a lot more skills through his work as a DJ, which he has done since 2004.

“The sound reverberating from those loud club speakers definitely energized me. And because I was very much into 90s electronic music, I was really inspired by remix albums from groups like Nine Inch Nails, DJ Shadow, Blackstrobe, Godflesh and White Zombie.”

Adam says he plans on following Re:construction with a solo album of original material.

“I started compiling things early this year. But it’s definitely not going to be a remix album.”

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