Subversive Element (Jim Goetsch) began as a jazz saxophonist, opening with his band for acts like Gil Scott-Heron and touring with blues legend Albert King, then later went off completely into electronic music. In 1997 he formed Biomechanique with DJ Luke Collins, performing in the L.A. area at places like Gabor Szupo's Lumpy Gravy, Spaceland, and Luna Park. In 2000, he released Demolition Squad "Hit It" with virtual orchestra master Kim Koschka, with Collins making guest appearances on two tracks with turntables and samplers. That record received a 9 out of 10 rating from Alternative Press.
His solo project has been Subversive Element, which he releases on his Psychosomatic Records label (psyrecords.com). In recent years he has performed as part of the Novabeats Sound System (novabeats.com) at the Knitting Factory in L.A. and the Create/Fixate art events, as well doing live broadcasts on Pat Murphy's long-running "Alien Air Music" show on L.A.'s innovative KXLU. His tracks have also been played on L.A.'s equally well-known KCRW.
In 2007 he made a guest appearance on alto sax on "Drawn Straws", the first release from the Strato Ensemble, a radically new fusion of electronica with ECM style jazz. In fall 2007, he released Subversive Element "Road Trip", a dubby mix of the sound of electronic studio music of the '60s over beats and bass, available now on CD Baby and Amazon. He is also looking forward to releasing two new CDs on Psychosomatic from Cavestar and Mr. Soon with works that could best be described as very abstract ambient.