POP MUSIC REVIEWS : Radio Kaos Treats Its Music Like a Game

Two years ago, when it was known as Scarlett, Radio Kaos looked ready to become L.A.’s most prominent rock en espanol band. The group still has some of the best songs and the most challenging arrangements around, but at the Arroyo Theatre in Highland Park on Saturday, the quartet still hadn’t realized its potential. Rock en espanol has entered the MTV era and a major record deal is a real possibility now, but Radio Kaos is still treating its music like a game.

Led by young Chilean brothers Claudio and David Perez, Radio Kaos performed a 15-song set of pop-flavored but powerful derivations of U2, early Duran Duran and the Red Hot Chili Peppers at their rawest--catchy tunes that can please both hard-core and soft-rock fans. But as performers they were downright careless: They twice stopped a song in the middle due to problems with the drum machine, one band member blamed another for a lousy vocal harmony, and at times they seemed unsure of what to do next.

The concert was opened by the debut of the solid Beledo Trio, led by Uruguayan virtuoso guitarist Jose Pedro Beledo, a former jazz-rock hero in Montevideo. He tried show-stopping solos, fusion-oriented ballads, straight-ahead rockers and even a tasteful reggae-ish samba.

If Beledo finds a definite sound and a singer up to the quality of his music, and if Radio Kaos gets serious, both could become significant forces in Spanish-language rock.