Music magazine analysis Birte G. Barsch

Kerrang

The splash image partly covers the masthead, so the magazine will get recognised even without seeing the whole masthead, because they are so well known.

The fonts are quite bold which represents the boldness of the rock music.

Extras that make the audience buy the magazine are announced with an exclamation mark and extra bold fonts to make the audience aware of it.

The colours, red, yellow and black are often associated with warning signs and danger. Which fits with the image of rock and the message the rock music sends out about being dangerous and rebellious. The singers hair also reflect this because its dyed into a unnatural red colour, which is rebellious and looks dangerous.

They use a different font for the main cover line “My Chemical Romance” The font reflects the image of the band and also includes a spider in the O in romance. Which is also associated with the band. The title is also in an angel which reflects the edginess off the band.

The colours are also something you expect to see on the front cover of Kerrang, because those are the main colours on most of the Kerrang magazines .

The splash images is the lead singer of My chemical Romance so it is connected to the main cover line. The Singer is looking straight into the camera so he creates a connection to the audience. Also he holds his hands like two guns so he creates a connection to the line that says “danger days”, at the same time it looks like he stands there with open arms so he invites the audience to read “The inside story” .The cloth he`s wearing also reflect the rock music industry, because he is wearing both a leather jacket and leather glows, and leather is a part of the typical rock image. However he brakes the rock image a little because he is smiling a little and looks quite inviting.

They use a skyline at the top and a menu strip at the bottom to introduce more of the contents of this issue.

The layout looks really busy, because of the many bold fonts and the bright colours that is used on the front cover. Also you have quit much texts, and multiple photographs.

Rock soundThe colours red, black and yellow are again used to associate with warnings and danger which the rock genre wants to be associated with.

The magazine try to capture the audience by offering free extras, like a CD and Posters. So the audience might not have that much money because they get drawn in by free offers

The splash image is a medium shot of the lead singer of Alkaline Trio, so even though it is a band the magazine chose to only present one person. So they present him as the one important person in the band. Also his cloths look quite proper while his facial impression brakes this image because he looks scary. Though his face works with the cover line saying “Alkaline Trio on the run from Satan” because he looks angry. This also works with the rock image. It also creates a connection between the artist and how the audience might want to be looked at. The red, blue and white on the tie, his shirt and his hat, also reflects where the the band comes from, USA.

They use a variety of fonts to make the magazine look busier so that it reflects the music genre again. They also use a lot of bold fonts for the most important cover lines to show the boldness of the rock genre.

The splash image partly covers the mast head which shows the confidence of the magazine, because they expect the audience to know what magazine they are even with parts of their name cover.

They use something like a skyline to tell the audience what else they can read about in the magazine. They also use a lot of images and cover lines to increase there audience range.While his eyes look really scary they also look straight into the camera to help create a connection between the audience and the person. The background of the cover is black to reflect the dark side of the rock music. Also it reflects the quite dark image of Alkaline trio, which is the main cover line.

Classic rock

These colours and font in this button reflect the image of the band. As well as this is the magazines flash, which is supposed to attracted the audiences.

The font with serifs that is used for the main cover line reflects a more sophisticated and classic take on the rock genre. It also shows a little more class which also works with the cover line ”meet rocks new royalty”

The primary colours in this cover are different shades of black and white as well as orange. Orange is usually not connotated with rock however it stands out against the grey background and draws the audiences eyes to the magazine.

They use the lead singer of muse as the splash image because the lead singer most often is the one that is the most famous. He also looks straight into the camera which draws the reader into the magazine. It also connects the reader to the band. The lead singer is also wearing a silver jacket which tells us that he is quite sophisticated.

They use the bold fonts to create a modern layout and to emphasize the boldness of the rock genre.

The san serif font is used to let the magazine look a little more modern. They also use the two fonts directly against each other to show that they look at all sides of the rock genre.

The magazine has quite a chaotic layout because the cover lines are spread all over the cover and have all different sizes. This chaotic layout might be associated with the life of a rock star.

They have use a thing line to have something besides the mast head that the audience will recognise with each of the magazine issues however they have partly covered it with the splash image which shows that they don’t need it

Because the he has his armed crossed, he reflects the rebelliousness of the genre.

By using this font the magazine seems more vintage which matches the name of the magazine which is classic rock. Also because of the colours of this plug(?) it catches the audiences eyes.

Kerrang

By having a image of the editor on the contents page the magazine creates a connection between the audience and the magazine also the editor has written something about this issue and signed it which makes it seem more personal and at the same time more official.

They have used the same priority colours for the contents page as for the front cover, which creates a continuity. Also the colours do again highlight the element of danger that is quite important to the rock genre. However they have used less red on the contents page which might be because this page doesn't have to catch the audiences eyes as much as the front cover.

The use of such a big image on the contents page helps the audience to understand what the main story is. It also makes the audience more interested in the story behind the image. By placing the page number just underneath the image it makes it easier to connect the image to a story in the magazine. The guy on the image is also wearing black leather which is often worn by Rock artists so its often connected with rock music. It also reflects the dark image that the rock music has. Also we don’t see his eyes so he looks more mysteries which again might make the audience find out more about him

The use of different head lines in black and yellow to dived the contents page, it makes it easier for the audience to find what they looking for. Also they have connected images to some of the tittles to make the reader more interested in the titles.

The use of multiple images on the contents page also widen the audience because they present more than just one band on the contents page.

They give you information about how you can get it sent to your door each week instead of having to buy it in store. So they expect the audience to buy more than one issue.

The use of a image with a black background makes the layout look simpler & cleaner. Also it picks up the colour that is used on the contents page. As well as again allowing the effect of yellow and black as a warning sign.Because black, yellow, red and white are the primary colours on both the front cover and the contents page these are part of the house style of the magazine. Also they have used the same fonts as on the cover page and these are also used in every issue so they are also part of the house style.

Rock sound

They have used a clear line for the contents. This line only includes the main features so only the things they expect most of the audience to read about, while everything else comes secondary.

They have also used a image to connect to the most important or biggest feature. Which helps the audience get interested in this article. As well as telling the reader which page they can find this on they have put a quote from the article onto the page to make the audience even more interested in the article.

Interesting enough the magazine doesn`t use the same colours on the front cover as on the contents page.This shows that the colours may not be a part of the house style but individual for each issue. The colours do however match the mise en sence in the image.

He wears a lot of dark colours which is quite common for Rock artist. He also has tattoos which is often associated with a more dangerous person which again reflects the typical rock image.

Under each of the headlines they have a sentence or two that gives an idea of what the different articles are about. This is similar to what Kerrang did with the smaller images on the contents page.

They remind the audience which magazine they are reading by having the name of the magazine on the top. Together with some general issue about this magazine ( The issue number and when it was published) .

All of the main features have the name of a band or artist as the head line. This widens the audience because if you don’t like one of the bands they have written about you might still be interested in one of the other bands they have written about

One of his eyes looks directly into the camera which creates a connection between the audience and the article.

The background is quite dark which again can be connotated with the dark side of the rock music. It also helps highlighting the face of the artist .

Classic rock

They have used a image in connection to one of the stories to make the audience read that one. Also the title and page number for that story is written in a bigger and bolder font than the other stories.

They use a plug to tell the audience about one of the extras you get by buying this issue. A free CD. By placing this one on top of the image of Joe Perry it creates a connection between the text in the plug and him.

Again the artist in the image wears a lot of black and leather which is associated with the quite classic rock image. Also he has an unnatural hair colour which also many of the rock artist have. The length of his hair also tells us that he is not one of the most modern rock artist but maybe a little older, because most of todays rock artist have that long hair.

The colours are more or less the same as on the front cover apart from that the front cover has a more orange shade than the contents page. The two main colours also reflect the colours he is wearing on the photo. This black and white theme tells the audience that the music in this magazine is more classic rock. This is again emphasised by the fonts that are used. Because most of them look quite simple and classic.

They have divided the contents page into different sections which makes it easier for the audience to read it. It also makes a more simple and classic layout. This simpler layout makes it seem like the audience is a bit older and more sophisticated than for instance the one of Kerrang

They have used a plug that says exclusive for Rock, this makes the audience feel like this is a special issue just for them and make them feel like they are a part of something exclusive. By using this plug they also make the magazine more special because this interview or article is only for this magazine . Also they have used the same font for the word “Rock” as on the front cover which creates a continuity and reminds the audience what magazine they are reading.

They have also short sentences underneath the titles to give the reader a taste of what the article is about. This has the same use as the images of different artists on Kerrang cover page.

KerrangBy using the same colours for the headline as the lead singer is wearing on the photograph they create a connection between the text and the photograph

They have placed the lead singer in the front of the other and also in the middle of the image. This emphasis that he is the most important person in the band and also the most known.

Because they have divided the article in two they make the reader by the next issue of the magazine. This is again emphasised by the text “Don`t miss next weeks Kerrang! For part two.” Also they make the magazine look more exclusive because they say it’s an Exclusive interview so the audience can only read it in this magazine.

They use the spider that is associated with band to connect the headline even more to the band. They also use parts of the interview as the head line, so you know what the interview is about.By having “to be continued…” at the end of the article it makes the article seem more like a story and less like an interview.

One of them also has a gun which is connoted with power. So this makes it seem like the band has power. Also at least two of them are wearing a leather jacket, leather is often connoted with the rock genre.

They have divided the article into two columns on one of the pages and a image on the second page. This helps creating a simpler layout which also helps the audience read it.

The text is a mix of quotes and normal text, which makes it more interesting for the audience to read then to just read a interview.

They have used quite a small font for the article itself while they have used a big and bold font to promote the next part of the interview and the next issue of the magazine.

They have also used a black background for the text rather than just having it directly on the white background. This helps making the text more readable and also it makes catches the audiences eyes more than

Rock soundThe headline is on a different page then the actual text this gives the article a continuity over the two pages.

They have used a font for the head line that looks like it is written by head this might either reflect the band or the season when it was published because this kind of font often is connoted with school, so it might have been published shortly before school started again or just as school started again.They have used two different fonts for their headline and also two different sizes. This is because they first want to show what band it is and then tell the audience what the article is about. By having the name of the band really big they catch the attention from the audience a lot easier.

They have again the lead singer in the middle of the image, which shows that the whole band revolves around him, and that he is the most important person. The image is quite dark which might reflect the dark side of the rock genre. This is again emphasised by them screaming, because screaming is often connoted with danger it makes them seem more dangerous. They also look straight into the camera which creates a connection between the audience and the band .

They have used different sizes for the fonts through out the article. This helps highlighting the most important parts of the article. Like the quote in the middle. It also helps braking up the text so it`s easier to read. They also have written the ingress in a bolder and bigger font then the actual body of the article, this helps drawing the audience into the article. Also with in the ingress the magazine makes the article seem more exclusive by using words like “the FULL story” so not only what everyone else knows about it.

They are all wearing quite dark cloths which is often associated with the rock genre. But at the same time the angel from which the photograph is taken makes them look smaller and powerless which is not usually connoted with the rock music.

The text gets connected to the image because of the way the text is wrapped around the image.

Classic rock

By using quotes they make the audience more interested in what the article is about. Also it helps braking up the text so it becomes easier to read and looks more interesting.

This magazine has chosen to go with the more sophisticated look by choosing to u sophisticated se a font with serifs. This is quite unusual for a rock magazine because the rock music more often is associated with bold and big fonts that most of the time are san-serif. They have a variation in the boldness and size of the fonts they have used. This helps highlighting the most important parts of the text and also where a new part of the text starts.

They have once again placed the lead singer front and centre to show how important he is.

They have also divided the text into different paragraphs which helps the audience read the article more easily.

They have used the colours black, white and grey or silver to emphasise that the band has class and also the black and white emphasise that the band might be a little old school. The colours also reflect the house style of the magazine.

The colours from the photo are repeated in the article so it connects the photograph and the article. They also wear black & leather to emphasise the rock genre. Because these two are things often connotated with rock music.

The band is looking straight into the camera which creates a connection between the band and the audience it also draws the audience into the article

They have used a mix of quotes, explanations and descriptions in the article. This makes it more interesting to read. Also by letting the first line being a quote it draws the audience more into the article because it creates a senses of personal connection to the band or person.

The white background, helps highlighting the the black clothing of the band. It also creates a contrast between the band and the background which makes them stand out more.