Britt Witt on March 6th, 2015

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Frankie’s debut EP doesn’t arrive until April 14, but it was clear Thursday night at the Bootleg HiFi that she’s already a “New Obsession” for many.

The Oakland-bred pop darling swiftly won over the audience, her quartet taking the stage to a homemade iPhone ringtone tune and kicking off the set with “New Obsession,” from that EP, “Dreamstate.” It made for a powerful start, and the singer born Frankie Miller fed off the nonstop energy of her bandmates and the inherently catchy vibe to delight the fawning crowd in advance of sets from Verre and Leland.

Despite her modest short black dress, Frankie didn’t display an ounce of shyness — smiling, laughing with the crowd, offering entertaining banter (“My mom thinks this song is about her but it’s not, but she’s here so I guess I’ll dedicate it to her”) and engaging in sweet boy/girl antics with producer-guitarist Petros, it was impossible to be bored while she performed. Acknowledging the difficulty factor in singing her recent single, “Problems, Problems,” the 23-year-old toned down her stage-bouncing, but even simply standing at the mic, she exuded dance-floor energy.

Slowing it down for the more acoustic song “Chaos,” Frankie picked up a country twang for a light and slow electric guitar serenade mid-set that proved her versatility in songwriting and performance style. This spotlight didn’t last long as the follow-up turned out to be a brilliant cover of “I Want You Back,” featuring air bass from Petros, and band introductions (Joey Orton on keyboards and Ben Rose on drums) during the instrumental breakdown.

The fast-paced, Kylie Minogue-meets-Katy Perry set ended at eight songs — too soon for most of the crowd, as Frankie giggled, “This is our last song!” and launched into her first single, “Blackout.”

Photos by Zane Roessell