Sean Marten

Me at age 11, at the family hi-fi, pretending to be a DJ.

I've been pretending ever since.

What was your first radio job? Recording songs from vinyl albums onto tape cartridges at Q100 (Now Z100). I was an intern. The little goofball notes I left on top of the stacks of finished tapes led to me getting an actual job on the air, eventually.

What was the first album (8-track, cassette, CD, mp3) that you purchased? First single: (45 rpm vinyl) “We Gotta Get Out of This Place” by Eric Burdon and the Animals. I was a little kid and told my big brother I loved that song, and he said “You should get the single.” “You can do that?” I asked. So he took me down to the record store and bought it for me. I forget the price, but it came with a b-side (“I Can’t Believe It”) so that’s twice the music for your buck than the current download pricing standard. But those were 1965 dollars, plus 45s were hard to rip into your iPod back then. First Album: (on cassette) Beatles – Abbey Road.

What was your first concert? Bachman Turner Overdrive with Seals and Crofts opening, at an outdoor arena in San Diego, in 1974. BTO cancelled, but Seals and Crofts agreed to play a full set for anyone who didn’t want a refund. I stayed, and they were great. I never knew a mandolin could go electric, let alone wail like that.

What’s your proudest moment? The moment I realized that my son’s skills as a musician, photographer, and video editor had surpassed my own.

What’s your favorite aspect of radio? The immediacy and the intimacy of it. It’s weird. For the most part, I’m in a room by myself, mixing songs and occasionally talking into a microphone. But it always feels like I’m part of a quiet conversation among friends, with all this great music going on around us.

What do you like least about radio? “And the breath I took between sponsorship mentions was sponsored by…”

What was your most embarrassing on-air moment? I’m sure I’ve messed up worse, but I still cringe over the time I could not for the life of me think of the simple words “Portland Saturday Market”. I heard myself blathering on about “Oh, you know...that, um, market thing, down by the waterfront...”

Then there was the time I got a piece of popcorn stuck in my throat. I was yammering away, then suddenly I sounded like somebody sat on a Chihuahua, then I’d be fine for a few more words, then back to the squished Chihuahua. Moral of the story: microwave popcorn has no place in broadcasting. Probably true for singers as well.

Who are your favorite writers? Going backwards in my personal timeline: Calvin Trillin, Hunter S. Thompson, P.J. O’Rourke, Henry Miller, Arthur C. Clarke, Beverly Cleary, Donald J. Sobol (author of the “Encyclopedia Brown” series), and Dr. Seuss.

What is your greatest fear? Revealing my greatest fear.

What is your most marked characteristic? My sense of humor – marked by heavy sarcasm, but redeemed by a deep appreciation of irony. And I am so glad you asked that question, by the way…

What is your most treasured possession? Do you mean “What would you save if your house was on fire?” Then I’d answer, “My family.” Everything else could go up in smoke and I’d get over it.  As for physical objects, there are some signed books I get a warm glow from owning -- Henry Miller’s “My Life and Times”, and a collection of works by graphic artist Moebius – who drew a full page sketch above his signature just for me because he was pleased that I had a French edition of his book.

What is your motto?

There’s nothing you can know
That can’t be known
Nothing you can see
That can’t be shown
There’s nowhere you can be
That isn’t where you were meant to be
It’s easy

What do you consider the most overrated virtue? Piety.

If you were to die and come back as a person or thing, what do you think it would be? Does an animal qualify? If so, Cheetahs are pretty cool. Ever heard one purr?

What characteristic do you most admire in other people? Being comfortable in one’s own skin, living in the moment, and finding joy in everyday life.

What characteristic do you least like in other people? Rapacious and insatiable greed.

Which talent would you most like to have? Musical talent.

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? See previous question.

What is your greatest regret?  The things I’ve never done, or never did well, because I was too shy or self-conscious. Dancing comes to mind, for one.

What is the most surprising thing about you? Driving home after Lights Out, I sometimes listen, loudly, to various flavors of metal – thrash metal, speed metal, industrial. Metallica, Rage Against The Machine, Korn -- bands like that. I find myself settling into the seat, my mind clears, and I feel relaxed. Go figure.

If you could have a conversation with one person – dead or alive – who would it be? I would love to actually have some of the conversations with my father that we’ve shared in my mind since he died. I’ve got a backlog of jokes I’d like to tell him, too. I’d start with this one: What did the Zen Master say to the hot-dog vendor? “Make me one with everything.”

BIOGRAPHY
I’ve been with KINK since 1982, which in the nomadic world of radio is quite a long run for a DJ to stay at one station, but in the world of KINK—it’s long, but Les was here before me.

I was eleven years old when I ditched the idea of becoming an astronaut or a rock star, and locked onto the goal of becoming the mellow evening guy at a cool, sophisticated FM station that played music I love. No kidding.

It was 1968, and I was listening KSJO in San Jose, on a transistor set tucked under my pillow. It was the golden age of underground hippie FM radio. Also the year KINK signed on the air, far to the north.

Wild horses couldn’t have kept me from this goal, but I still marvel sometimes at my good fortune to have landed here.

I grew up in Salinas, California (briefly fabled in “Me and Bobby McGee� by Kris Kristofferson), but came to Oregon as a youth by way of Mexico, where I went to high school in Guadalajara (briefly fabled in “My Old School� by Steely Dan) and spent many, many summers in Baja California (any Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass song will do.)

Currently, my wife Joni and I are raising a very talkative young son, who keeps our brains firing on all pistons at all times. Joni is a professional chef, so sometimes I get to help out with the mincing and slicing. I love watching her work—and tasting the results.