"Big Time Sensuality" was one of the last songs to be written for Debut, and was originally planned to be the first single from the album,[3] but it got delayed by the release of "Human Behaviour".

The singer's meeting with Hooper inspired her in writing the song: "I think it's quite rare, when you're obsessed with your job, as I am, when you met someone who's your other part jobwise and enables you to do what you completely want".

The single also contained "Glóra" ("Gloria") and "Síðasta Ég" ("The Last Me") as B-sides, two songs that were recorded by The Elgar Sisters, a group formed in the early eighties by guitarist Guðlaugur Kristinn Óttarsson and Björk.

The first two verses of "Big Time Sensuality" are underscored by upbeat keyboards that lead into electronica and techno-influenced grooves that Sandy Masuo of Option defined as "brooding".

The track ends with the lines "It takes courage to enjoy it/The hardcore/And the gentle/Of Big Time Sensuality" whispered by Björk.

Reviewing the album, Heather Phares of AllMusic, noted that "Björk's playful energy ignites the dance-pop-like 'Big Time Sensuality' and turns the genre on its head with 'There's More to Life Than This'.

"[7] The website cites the track as an All Media Network-pick, and in a track review, Stacia Proefrock defined it as an "aggressive, screechy dance number" that "While not scraping the top of the charts[...] was part of an album unusual enough to stand out among its fellow pop releases as a quirky and complex experiment that worked most of the time".

[8] Larry Flick from Billboard wrote, "Wiggly bass and heavy beat come to the fore here, unfortunately competing with Björk's voice for lead billing, when her vocal really should be allowed to steal the show.

[10] John Hamilton from Idolator felt that "this dancefloor monster resembles the soulful American house sounds of Crystal Waters and Ultra Nate in its original album mix, but for the single, it was revamped into a storming trance jam by remix duo Fluke.

"[11] Taylor Parkes from Melody Maker named it Single of the Week, writing that the new remixes "burn with precisely the kind of firework-faced madness that the best dance music achieves almost effortlessly, metallic thunder and cyclones of percussion, Björk's urgent, foot-stamping voice bobbing and weaving inside it all like a heat-seeking dolphin.

"[12] Martin Aston from Music Week gave it four out of five, stating that it "sees the ubiquitous star this time going for the big dancefloor smash", adding that "she can do no wrong right now.

[14] Johnny Dee from NME commented, "More fun, madness and surprise follows", noting "the pulsating grind" of the song.

[15] Tim Jeffery from the Record Mirror Dance Update noted, "That soaring voice starts the track over swirling synths before a deep and rumbling bassline powers in and the rest is history repeated as Bjork heads for another smash.

[18] "Big Time Sensuality" was nominated in the Best Song category at the 1994 MTV Europe Music Awards, losing to "7 Seconds" by Youssou N'Dour and Neneh Cherry.

We had very big speakers and were blasting the song, everybody was kinda listening, and you know how New York people are, they're very sort of open anyway, they were clapping and dancing along, it was a bit of a performance statement.

[22] The video for "Big Time Sensuality" was shot in black and white on 26 October 1993[23] and features Björk dancing on the back of a moving truck slowly driving through New York City in the middle of the day.

The video helped Björk to be known in North America where it received heavy rotation on MTV channels, with many noting that the video was more known in the country than the song: "Few people know how the melody for "Big Time Sensuality" starts, but anyone who watched MTV in the early '90s could cheerfully belt out the single measure when she sings the words "Big Time Sensuality".

Björk performed the song live on other British shows like Dance Energy, Top of the Pops and Smash Hits Poll Winners Party.

She also performed the song live, dressed in a big, red gown at the 1994 MTV Europe Music Awards, where she received two nominations.

The song was part of her MTV Unplugged set list, where it received a different arrangement, accompanied by Indian instruments and a harpsichord.