From Flower Vase to Film Emperor in Hollywood

Dumbfounded!

Despite the steadily increasing expectations, and the industry recognizing the ambitious collaboration between iTunes and Thirty-First of August, it was still shocking to the entire North American music industry when the four-hour download volume exceeded 500,000. Everyone was scrambling to pick up the pieces of their shattered expectations.

However!

Incredibly, this was just the beginning!

Wait, what happened? Were there any special circumstances?

The answer lies in the special deluxe edition physical album of "Midsummer Midnight."

While the bustling crowd focused entirely on iTunes and digital music sources, the physical album released by Warner Records also went on sale smoothly.

Compared to the attention garnered by "One More Light," the physical album's spotlight was significantly diminished due to being labeled as a "money-grabbing" scheme. A large number of fake music fans clamored to refuse being fooled and attempted to boycott the special deluxe edition.

However, this still couldn't stop the flood of people pouring into record stores.

Firstly, the listeners who discovered the treasure that was Thirty-First of August at the Grammy Awards hadn't purchased "Midsummer Midnight" before, so they naturally didn't mind buying the special deluxe edition.

Secondly, hardcore fans had been eagerly awaiting the special deluxe edition, as it traditionally contained hidden surprises, such as special posters or special tracks, and so on.

These people were eagerly anticipating and entered record stores at the first opportunity.

Then, the surprise came—

Thirty-First of August truly lived up to their reputation as a unique firework that doesn't follow the usual path. The special deluxe edition really brought surprises, exceeding all expectations.

The album, based on the original, actually added five hidden tracks!

Five tracks! A full five tracks!

The original album only had ten songs, but now Thirty-First of August generously added five songs, making the "Midsummer Midnight" special deluxe edition almost equivalent to a brand new album, once again offering a musical feast.

Everyone was collectively stunned—

Who was it that said "One More Light" would only sell for ten dollars? Stand up now!

Look at the sincerity of Thirty-First of August! Look at the attitude of Thirty-First of August! Look at the integrity of Thirty-First of August!

What money-grabbing?

Heh, Thirty-First of August doesn't bother with such commercial behavior at all. They only care about the music. The Grammy Awards performance already proved everything, didn't it? Those doubts, dark thoughts, and evil ideas reflect the ugliness and distortion within themselves.

Now, look at the reality before them. They are so small, so humble, and so insignificant in front of Thirty-First of August.

On the back cover of the album, it was clear at a glance, in addition to the original ten tracks:

"If - I - Go, I'm - Going."

"Monster."

"Satellite."

"1000X."

"One More Light." (Note 1)

A full five songs, all new tracks.

Fans who had been closely following Thirty-First of August's European street tour quickly discovered that these tracks had never been performed in any venue. They were all brand new creations.

Surprising or not, unexpected or not.

Now, the focus was not only on "One More Light," and expectations were completely off the charts.

At this time, people finally realized the intention of Thirty-First of August.

If you were only interested in the band because of the Grammy Awards, then you could simply buy the song "One More Light" on iTunes. Ninety-nine cents would allow you to easily enjoy your favorite music.

If you paid attention to the band because of the Grammys and wanted to explore further, then you could buy the special deluxe edition of the album to experience the changes in Thirty-First of August before and after the awards ceremony.

Generous, upright, with a sense of "Welcome to my music world" and the spirit, showing the unique attitude of Thirty-First of August.

Most importantly, when the first batch of fans bought the physical album, they actually discovered—

The inner pages had no special content.

Generally speaking, special deluxe edition albums often add inner page content, such as a small photo album, special lyric cards, special gifts, large posters, and even some albums have peripheral products.

In fact, this is also the "peripheral" that countless fans are eagerly waiting for. In the years around the millennium, teenagers liked to post movie posters or album posters in their bedrooms to worship their idols in this way. Now, what fans urgently need is such a thing.

Indeed, everyone likes the music of Thirty-First of August, but who can refuse Anson?

Anyway, haters are haters, and they will always live in their own distorted world.

For hardcore fans, regret is regret, but it's not without gains.

Because of this, the posters randomly included with the "Midsummer Midnight" special deluxe edition album have become a hard currency among fans—

One for everyone.

At least, the posters specially shot by Thirty-First of August for the special deluxe edition were well received!

There are a total of five posters: one group photo of the band and one individual photo of each of the four band members. Buying an album will randomly give you one.

Undoubtedly, the Anson version poster is the best seller.

That poster is exactly the picture on the iTunes opening page, a backlighting poster comparable to the composition of "The Creation of Adam", with a face-to-face four-eye contact with Anson.

Only three hours after the special deluxe edition album was released, fans finally figured out the situation, and a secondary market had already appeared—

The price of a poster had already soared to eight hundred dollars, but it still couldn't stop.

Unbelievable!

This moment is the moment to test the fanaticism of fans.

Surprises came one after another, and the release of the "Midsummer Midnight" special deluxe edition once again made a brilliant debut with an overwhelming attitude.

Originally, the focus of attention was all taken away by "One More Light", and many people thought that Thirty-First of August was just seizing the heat of the Grammy Awards to make a quick buck; but they never expected the album to be so sincere, and the focus gathered on iTunes was pulled back again.

If the singers' skills in making money are so superb, then music lovers will naturally raise their hands and feet to welcome them.

Perhaps, the only straw that haters can now grab is:

Can the quality of all five songs be on par with "One More Light"? Or are they just filling the numbers?

Note 1: If - I - Go, I'm - Going — Gregory - Alan - Isakov

Monster — Starset

Satellite — Ben - Abraham

1000X — Jarryd - James

One More Light — Linkin - Park