The high-energy Phoenix-based band Planck delivered vibrant performances at Let It Roll, blending rock, funk, and dance music on June 28, 2025.
The night kicked off with psychedelic tunes vibrating throughout the bowling arena. Fans gathered around to listen to the band’s colorful, abstract sound.
Steven Cunningham, the bass guitarist, shared how he and his guitarist, Austin Ellis, were in a band together in Arizona.
After one of the band members left to move to California, Cunningham left the band to take a break from the chaotic lifestyle.
Eventually, Cunningham became restless and called up Ellis to meet up with their former guitarist, Tyler LaFlam, on Craigslist.
“I’m gonna start a new jam band with blackjack and hookers,” Cunningham said jokingly.
The group jammed out in LaFlam’s kitchen while struggling to book shows in Phoenix.
Yet the group never gave up. Once they started booking shows, they picked the name Planck and built a scene around them.
Each performance is uniquely different. Both original and cover songs are never presented in the same way.
“You’ll never hear ‘Shelf’ the same way twice,” Cunningham said.
Ellis said his passion for playing music was “just doing it.”
“Just out there making people dance and happy and having a good time,” Ellis said.
With that in mind, Planck formed local bonds with fans across the Phoenix area. However, one particular fan caught their attention.
Quoted by the band members themselves, the “Planck Legend” Ransom Tom is a superfan who attended every performance, missing only one.
“If Ransom is not at a Planck show, it’s not a Planck show,” Cunningham said.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Ransom Tom discovered the band performing at a park in Gilbert, Arizona.
Although he doesn’t consider himself a dancer, he found himself swaying to the blissful groove and funk of the band.
“It’s just something that just naturally happens,” he said. “It feels good.”
When the night began, he described the music as “real, smiled, and cosmic”. However, it smoothly shifted into a “dancey and technoey” vibe.
“It feels like a friendship,” Ransom Tom said. “We’re all a bunch of buddies, and they’ve always welcomed me there.”
The band’s future goal is to expand further, with the hope of headlining Red Rocks or performing at the Sphere in Las Vegas, Nevada, within 20 years.
Edited by Pedro Rojo Rodriguez
