The Band
Seven players, a full horn section, and the sound of a Portland summer turned all the way up.
Tiny Desk Contest 2026Meet the band in motion
Music that moves, shimmers, and sizzles.
Sunburned Sharks is a Portland, Maine dance band with bright guitar, smooth vocals, deep pocket rhythm, and horn lines built to fill a room.
The band draws from sixties soul, seventies funk, eighties pop, nineties rock, R&B, and classic rock. The result feels gritty and vintage at one moment, polished and modern the next.
A set can travel from Whitney Houston and Marvin Gaye to Fleetwood Mac, Tom Petty, The Dip, Bruce Springsteen, and the band’s own songs. Every arrangement is shaped for a live crowd.
At the helm
Vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter Ryan Allen Meier brings more than a decade of wedding band direction, arranging, recording, and production to the project.
The debut record also features Jim Vannest on bass and vocals, Spencer Cook on tenor saxophone, and Caleb Matheson on drums and production.
Notable performances
The sound
Rhythm section
Drums, bass, keys, and guitar keep the pocket warm and the dance floor moving.
Voices
Lead vocals and harmonies move easily from intimate soul to full room singalongs.
Horns
Tenor saxophone and trumpet give every chorus lift, color, and unmistakable live energy.
Sounds like
Sink your teeth in.
See the performance reel, browse the show archive, or tell us about the room you want to fill.