Flyers’ first Phish night had DIY Gritty costumes, Phish trivia, and more: ‘A dream come true’
Rift, a Phish cover band, performed a 90-minute pregame and had a postgame concert at Stateside Live!
Hundreds of fans gathered at Stateside Live! ahead of the Flyers’ home game against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday night to celebrate the franchise’s first Phish Night.
Whether they were dressed in Flyers gear, wearing Phish merchandise, or custom Trey Anastasio Flyers T-shirts, they danced to the sounds of Philly’s Phish tribute band, Rift, as they performed their 90-minute pregame set to get fans excited for what was in store for the rest of night.
Phish Night was a highly anticipated event for 45-year-old Doylestown native Brett Erpel and his brother Aaron. After the official announcement, Brett received a text message from his 47-year-old brother that read “Let’s go to this.”
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The brothers have been fans of the band since 1995 after watching them perform for the first time at the Mann Music Center. Brett’s fandom has stretched over three decades.
For diehard fans like Brett and Aaron, Thursday night was the perfect combination of three things they love the most: Philadelphia, the Flyers, and Phish.
“I’m a huge Phish fan,” said 23-year-old Andrew Singer, a Philadelphia native. “The Flyers are an integral part of our city, especially during the winter time. I love Phish, the city of Philadelphia, and the Flyers. I just wanted to come out and support that.”
The Flyers and the band have had long connection. Phish’s first-ever performance at the Spectrum took place on Dec. 15, 1995, which saw their guitarist and singer Anastasio perform in a No. 10 John LeClair Flyers jersey. And before that performance the band visited the team in their training center.
Since then, Phish had historic performances at The Spectrum which became immortalized on the album The Spectrum ’97.
“Tonight is sort of like the culmination of this long dating process,” said Ike Richman, who owns a communications company and is long-time friends with Phish. “Tonight’s their wedding day. The Flyers and Phish are finally getting married because we’ve had this parallel for so many years. The Flyers fans know about Phish and the Phish fans know about the Flyers. But, tonight they get to all come together in this beautiful night that features their music and celebrations.”
Anastasio has been a lifelong fan of the Flyers. Some have even made the connection that Anastasio and Flyers mascot Gritty look very similar, leading to some fans dressing up as the NHL mascot for a DIY Gritty costume contest, including Frank McGannon.
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“I’m 50-years-old and dressed like this,” McGannon said. “I was invited to the concert being that it was Phish Night tonight. … And I was nominated to dress up for the Gritty contest. I guess I have that spirit, and here I am.”
McGannon made his way to the Xfinity Mobile Arena after the concert to get his one-of-a-kind, co-branded Phish and Flyers T-shirt, which features the band’s logo decorated in Gritty’s orange fur with the bubbles replaced by popcorn. The line for the shirt stretched across 11 sections, starting at the Sales and Service table, located across from Section 112, and ending at Section 101.
“The shirt is great,” McGanon said. “I’m not going to lie, it’s the only reason I’m here.”
Along with the exclusive merchandise, fans could grab special menu items only available on Thursday night — including a Fishman doughnut from Federal Donuts & Chicken, a Split Open and Melt cheesesteak, a Poor Heart burger, a Ruby Waves vodka cocktail, and a Scent of a Mule vodka mule with a hint of mint.
Throughout the Flyers-Maple Leafs game, there were singalong moments from some of the band’s greatest hits, and Phish trivia questions which resulted in a fan winning a signed vinyl record from the band.
“It’s like a dream come true to see this happen,” said Richman, who presented the Flyers with the idea over the summer. “I’m grateful, again, that the Flyers are doing this and Phish is doing this. But, this is really for the fans and we want the fans to have a real good time. And as they say, let’s get down to the nitty-gritty and let’s get this show on the road.”
A portion of the tickets sold from the event will benefit The WaterWheel Foundation, which supports causes in the Phish community.