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HEAVYbreathing Vol. 1: Bite It!
When I first heard about these four HEAVYbreathing volumes of erotic music, I wondered what more they could possibly contribute to this already oversaturated kitsch niche. Somewhat different from others like it is that these volumes are further subdivided into themes. The series is subtitled "The Sounds of Sex," and that's pretty much what this disc is, for better or for worse.
Dating from the second half of the 20th century, these tracks are from a variety of countries and musical styles. The songs are arranged for impact rather than chronologically, which makes this more than a mere archival project. But while ambitious in scope, it does have a couple of debilitating limitations.
The biggest stumbling block for me is that almost every track features the sound of a woman's orgasm. Not only are these obviously faked and about as erotic as an anatomical chart, but the explicitness leaves little to the imagination. The novelty gets old fast. This is a shame because there's actually a lot of good music underneath these moans that becomes secondary as a result. This disc is obviously aimed at a heterosexual audience, presumably lonely bachelor fans of Austin Powers.
The highlight for me is the section starting with Suzie Seacell's "Me and My Vibrator," followed by the always entertaining Screamin' Jaw Hawkins and his track "Bite It," The Groovers' "Groovy," and John & Jackie's "Little Girl." This sequence strikes the perfect balance of humor and raunch and would be just as likable no matter the context. There are a few other notable curiosities, like Jean Seberg's "Hiasmina" or Joy Bamgbola's strangely alluring a capella "Wet Lips," but it's hard to listen to this compilation straight through. One thing this collection does especially well is documenting the origin of these tracks. Even when the liner notes tend to be more anecdotal than informative, they're still enjoyable to read.
Timed to exactly 69 minutes, it's obvious that a lot of work went into this volume, which makes it unfortunate that the overall results aren't that stimulating.
samples:
- Suzie Seacell - Me and My Vibrator
- John & Jackie - Little Girl
- Joy Bamgbola - Wet Lips
