Sek's blues, taxi ride from hell, naked ambitions

Rock'n'roll nightmare

Sek's concert

Troubled rocker Sek Loso says he has no regrets after his milestone 40th birthday concert last week pulled a paltry crowd, caused a teen commotion out front, and earned savage criticism on the internet for its poor quality.

Fans criticised the concert at Rajamangala stadium last Sunday for a lack of professionalism, Sek’s wild antics on stage, and his decision to let fans in the cheap seats join the big-paying ones in front.

One disaffected fan, Attapol Bellrelease Kaithong, left a review at the Pantip web board, widely published by mainstream media, in which he predicted Sek would find it hard to mount a comeback from such a dismal show.

Mr Attapol, who said he has been a fan of Sek’s since he was aged eight, and bought tickets to his concert as long ago as July, says the rocker left him feeling disheartened.

"I cannot accept the way he exploits the stage to satisfy his own desire to behave like an animal. Thais can’t accept such childish, untamed antics," he said.

Most reports of the concert remark on the poor attendance. They say Sek swore liberally, smoked cigarettes, and let a large crowd of female admirers on stage to hug him and kiss him when it was all over.

His less than spectacular concert opening comes as the rocker battles marital problems with his former wife, who has accused him of assault. Kannayao police have called in Sek to answer the charges today.

Images from the concert show the stands at the back and the big-paying seats in front were virtually empty. Sek called out to security to let fans in the cheap seats join those paying up to 5,000 baht a ticket in front.

Reports say the sudden rush of fans from the back caused a commotion, though no injuries were reported.

Fans sitting at the rear paid as little as 200 baht for their seats.

Revellers in the big-paying seats, who found the tickets they had bought were suddenly undervalued, left angry messages on social media demanding their money back.

Reports said the concert also was hampered by rain in the early evening, and a teen scuffle in front involving technical college students.

Police closed the entrance and exit to the stadium as they rounded up 500 students from three rival colleges and sent them back in buses to the city. Minor injuries were reported, and the concert was delayed by an hour.

Inside, when the two-hour concert eventually started, fans complained about the sound quality, and poor atmosphere.

"The bass kept cutting out, and singing by his guest performers tailed off, failing to sync with the music, as the sound system was no good," Mr Attapol wrote.

"Sek no longer occupies the high ground as one of our top performers any more," he said.

Sek, who set up a concert management company, Loso Entertainment, to stage the event, is undaunted by negative reaction.

"I am a happy man," he declared on Facebook. "I spent 1.8 billion baht on the concert, but made two billion from sponsors and ticket proceeds."

He claims he spent 300 million baht flying in "beautiful women" in seven planes to join him on stage when the concert ended.

Sek said his fans could look forward to more to come. He plans another two big concerts in Bangkok to mark his 40th birthday, followed by a series of 10 smaller concerts in the provinces. -

2. Mummy's boy comes asunder

Patrick being nabbed

Patrick as a child

Former child actor Chanon "Patrick" Makaramani was rescued by his mother after a row with a taxi driver early on Friday ended with him in police handcuffs.

Patrick was returning from a friend’s place in the Ekkamai area where they celebrated Loy Krathong. He admits he had been drinking, though denies reports he was no longer able to control himself. He and three others had called a taxi about 2am to go home.

He said he and his friends were teasing each other in the taxi, which may have led the driver to believe they were arguing, which was not true.

The driver pulled over at a police checkpoint on the Ramintra-At Narong Expressway close to Rama IX where he asked for help. Police asked Patrick to get out of the car, but he refused. He started arguing with the driver and police had to separate them.

Officers at the checkpoint say Patrick failed to cool down, so they restrained him. Media images show him handcuffed and bare-chested.

They called his mother to the scene, who accompanied him to Makkasan police station. Officers charged him with drunkenness and causing public disorder, and fined him 1,000 baht.

Media clips show Patrick’s mother offering copious wais to police by way of apology for her son’s behaviour.

Patrick, who was involved in a leaked clip saga earlier this year in which he took off his clothes in front of a young woman, denies hitting the driver and says the argument stemmed from a misunderstanding.

"I know I speak in a loud voice and am hot-tempered, but I also have no problem admitting when I have done something wrong. The driver thought we were arguing, which is untrue. He tried to force us out of the taxi before we reached home. I was stunned, and argued with him," he said. -

3. Barely legal

Kratai

Sexy model Tadsika "Kratai" Yutimit is under fire for urging a fan who wanted to see pictures of her naked to get an education first before thinking of turning bad.

A fan, Bb Benz, contacted her on Instagram to propose they swap pictures of themselves naked. Judging by her picture, Bb Benz appears to be a teen girl, though some netizens say she could be a male admirer posing as a youngster to get his way.

Kratai replied saying if she was prepared to make such an over-the-top demand, she could hardly call herself a true fan.

"Finish your schooling first, and after that you can turn wanton. This is my work. But even though I model for a living, I don’t have to show off my vagina. If you want me to show mine, will I get paid for it?

"I don’t do it for free. You should focus on your studies, such as getting a master’s degree like mine, to make mum and dad proud.

"If we are really polite, we don’t really use such language anyway," she added, referring to the youngster’s choice of vernacular to describe her private parts.

Netizens are unimpressed, saying Kratai appears to be imparting good advice to the girl, but despite her education is still willing to take her clothes off.

"She comes across well, but her remark about how she won’t show her body unless money changes hands really says it all," one said.

Another says Kratai shouldn’t flaunt her knowledge by referring to her master’s degree.

"How can you talk about a master's degree at the same time as taking off your clothes?" he asks.

The model, who has yet to respond to the social media exchange, also appears in a sexy video released last week which is attracting criticism for blatantly peddling sex as a means to sell skin cream.

In the five-minute clip, Kratai wears a red bikini while taking a shower. A "friend" filming her encourages Kratai to take her top off, though the model keeps her breasts covered with her hands.

At the end, Kratai has finished her shower and is applying skin cream. She says the cream has helped keep her skin clear of rashes.

Netizens say the shower scenes, which take up most of the clip, are just an excuse to peddle the cream. "I can’t see the connection," one laments.