Radio Gods Can’t Find Energetic Edge

Who could blame Chris O’Connor for looking overwhelmed as his band, Primitive Radio Gods, played at the Dragonfly on Tuesday? For the former air traffic controller, this has been the sort of year that only happens in dreams.

A while ago, singer-guitarist O’Connor ran across 3-year-old demo tapes of his long-defunct band and, on a whim, tossed a couple into the mail. The rest is alternative-pop history--namely, a softly rapped, keyboard-driven, B.B. King-sampling hit song called “Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth With Money in My Hand.”

Standing on the Dragonfly’s stage with his reconstructed group, O’Connor seemed more burdened than blessed as he plowed through his schizophrenic mix of electric-guitar glam and bluesy arena-rock, recalling everything from Aerosmith to David Bowie. But the crowd didn’t show up for electric guitars: It was there for the hip-hop-tinged synthesizer rock of “Phone Booth.” The discrepancy between that song and the band’s confusing sound pointed to the conundrum that nags PRG: Is it a one-hit wonder?

Some of the crowd’s energy had been sapped by opening act Gus, a newcomer who dipped into aggro-folk and ear-blasting rock. In contrast to the intense, dramatic showmanship that fueled Gus, O’Connor looked as if he’d be more at home, well, at home, as he stumbled along trying to make the samples sound live, not canned. The show’s one highlight, a new modal acoustic number, hinted that PRG has passion up its sleeve. But little was present during this troubled, lackluster show.