Why does my boyfriend react this way when I try to have a semi-meaningful discussion?

My boyfriend is a very intelligent guy. I know he is, but he often fails to show it because he doesn’t express himself very well. I’ve known him for about 4 months, and I don’t feel much of a connection yet. I feel like we haven’t gotten much of anywhere and I don’t know him as well as I should. As I reflect on our relationship, I realize most of our interaction is shallow day-to-day kind of stuff. When we hang out, it’s always pretty superficial. We don’t really ever have meaningful conversations. A couple of times, I voiced some concerns I had about my relationships with my friends, and he simply said, “I got no advice for you dear, I don’t really know what to tell ya.” or “I don’t really know what to say…”. It was extraordinarily unhelpful. I don’t see what’s so difficult about offering me insight and having a conversation. I really don’t know how to get through to him! Is he just being a typical guy and I’m just being whiny, or is there a cause for concern here? Should it be this difficult to establish a connection?