It's a case of Dr. Ghetto and Mr. Hyde.

On the phone, the Detroit remixer and producer Craig Adams is so cordial, laidback and e-z going that every pause causes you to wonder whether he's fallen asleep, or died or something.

The music he makes under the moniker and in the character of DJ Assault, on the other hand ... well, it is, in itself, an assault.

An in-yo-face blend of hip hop, sex, techno, sex, and jungle, with many varied beats.

It's been said Assault is the perfect musical byproduct of Detroit.

"At one point, but not so much now," Adams says. "It's maybe about 20 per cent, these days.

"I try to do what I do but at the same time pay attention to the market, what's happening on the radio and video as far as more hip hop stuff."

Which explains his latest album, and first album of all-new material, Jefferson Ave.

The disc takes his sound and the DJ Assault character to a whole new level of 2 Live Crew tongue-in-cheek sleaze.

Adams, who's performing this evening at the Night Gallery, admits it's part of a conscious attempt to move to the next level, without necessarily compromising his integrity or getting entirely away from what he does.

"The fact that I've been doing it for so long, it's time to," he pauses briefly, "I don't do it for the money, but there comes a point in time where you're trying to make as much money as you can doing it so I lean more towards the hip hop side plus with me rapping ..."

Adams is hoping that the album, as well as the new mix work he's doing, will afford him the opportunity to have a career like venerable hip hop producer Dr. Dre or, more preferably, Timbaland (Jay-Z, Nas, Aaliyah).

"(Timbaland) didn't come in because he was associated with this person or that person ... ," Adams says.

"He was independent and did his own production and his own style and everybody came to him, wanting Timbaland after a while. That's basically how I want to be."