Released by Motown Records in November 1984, the album yielded two hit singles on the US R&B Songs chart: "Pretty Mess" and "Mechanical Emotion".

In a contemporary review for The Village Voice, Robert Christgau gave Wild Animal a "C−" and compared the record to Vanity 6: "Where formerly she talked her way through bright, crisp, rocking high-end arrangements and kept the smut simple, here she 'sings' verbose, amelodic fantasies rendered even duller by a dim, bassy mix.

And anyone who dreamed that she'd liberated herself from pornographic role-playing should get a load of the electric dildos, cum-stained frocks, and psychedelic sex slavery she flaunts as she strikes out on her own.

But the public refused to take Vanity seriously as a solo artist, and this album's unimpressive sales reflected that.

"[2] The fourth track, "Strap On Robbie Baby", was notable for being on the Parents Music Resource Center's list of the "Filthy Fifteen" due to its sexual overtones.