ABOUT THE BAND

Based in Portland, Maine, this sun-soaked indie-funk R&B band distills everything from 60s soul, 70s funk, 80s pop, 90s rock, R&B, to classic rock into one singular vision: gritty vintage-meets-polished modern. 

With bright guitar lines that catch the light like ocean spray, go-down-smooth vocals, and airtight horn lines that punch with big-band swagger, Sunburned Sharks has drawn comparisons to Hozier's spiritual intensity, Lake Street Dive's horn-fueled vitality, Vulfpeck’s vacuum-seal vision, and John Mayer's guitar finesse. The setlist might take you from Whitney Houston to Marvin Gaye, Al Green to Fleetwood Mac, Tom Petty to The Dip, Bruce Springsteen to original indie-funk fever dreams—each delivered with an energy that could power a town for a week.

This is music that moves, shimmers, and sizzles. 

At the helm is vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter Ryan Allen Meier, a New England musician whose restless creative spirit has reimagined and reharmonized across genre-divides giving life to a wellspring of original music as well as a jumbled-up jukebox of classic hits. He's spent over a decade directing wedding bands, arranging, recording, producing, and learning how far each audience likes to lean.  Sunburned Sharks channels all of it into one place: a band that sounds like the height of summer, feels like hopping between the cold plunge and the sauna, and glides like none other.  Sink your teeth in.

NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:

  • AURA, Maine Tech Week Finale 2025

  • Thompson’s Point, Independence Day 2025

  • North Haven Community DaysFestival

  • Wild Pines Music Festival 2025

  • Jamaica Plain Fest 2025

  • Big Falls Festival sponsored by Feel Good Inc. 2025

The Porthole

Filmed and edited by Sarah Violette (Violette Media)
Song: “Love-Sicker”
recorded at The Studio Portland

Big Falls Fest ‘25

Filmed and edited by Jordan Rowe Photography
Song: “Sunburned Sharks”
recorded at The Studio Portland

Thompson’s Point

Filmed and edited by Just One Look Media
Song: “Wet Paint Blue Eyes (demo)”
written, performed, and recorded by Ryan Allen Meier

North Haven Community
Street Dance

Filmed by the band
Edited by Ryan Allen Meier
Song: “Dancing In The Dark” written by Bruce Springsteen,
arranged and performed by Sunburned Sharks.
Recorded at The Studio Portland.

Blue
Portland Maine

Filmed and edited by Epic Frames Media
Song: “Wet Paint Blue Eyes (demo)” written, performed, and recorded by Ryan Allen Meier

Wild Pines Music Festival

Filmed, edited, and colored by Sarah Violette (Violette Media)

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