Artist
Spoon Harris & Obernik
Why we feature this artist The dry vocal character of Baditude Baditude brings Dave Spoon, Paul Harris and Sam Obernik together around a vocal with a strong sense of mischief. The electronic arrangement is clean and forceful, but Obernik’s delivery keeps the r…
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The story of Spoon Harris & Obernik
Why we feature this artist
The dry vocal character of Baditude
Baditude brings Dave Spoon, Paul Harris and Sam Obernik together around a vocal with a strong sense of mischief. The electronic arrangement is clean and forceful, but Obernik’s delivery keeps the record from feeling impersonal. Her phrasing gives the repeated hook a character, as if a slightly troublesome person has taken control of an otherwise orderly house groove.
The 2008 Toolroom single
The collaboration appeared through Toolroom in 2008. Contemporary release coverage identifies the three performers by name, while the original catalogue preserves both a radio edit and an extended club mix. The single reached number twenty-nine in Britain, giving the shared project a crossover moment beyond its club setting.
Obernik had already brought a distinctive vocal personality to dance records such as Tim Deluxe’s It Just Won’t Do. Here the voice again does more than carry a melodic refrain. The timing of a word, a small change of emphasis and the attitude within a short phrase become active parts of the rhythm.
The production around the personality
Spoon and Harris’ electronic setting keeps a firm outline around that performance. The instrumental figures do not need a complex sung narrative to become memorable, because the vocal already supplies a point of view. The record’s humour comes from how confidently that personality sits inside the beat.
The remix catalogue includes treatments by Mark Mendes and other producers, extending the song into different club contexts. The original keeps the division of roles particularly clear: Spoon and Harris give the rhythm a firm electronic outline, while Obernik’s dry, sharply placed performance supplies the vocal character. Even at club-mix length, her delivery remains the main attraction.
Essential releases
Baditude
Dave Spoon, Paul Harris and Sam Obernik share the Toolroom single’s tightly drawn production and vocal character.