The title NME is in red, block capitals. It is situated in the left hand corner of the magazine, and despite being covered up by a graphic, it stands out to the target audience due to the colour being out of place to the rest of the scheme and being in a slight different font.

The top line tells the reader that the magazine is a “special” edition, making it more desirable to the target audience. It also says that they “must own” the newest upcoming releases; according to Dyer’s Theory the audience would buy this in order to feel adequate and fit in with the rest of society.

The buzz word “exclusive” and “unseen” automatically draws the reader’s attention and makes them feel privileged to have access.

The main feature cover line is about Liam Gallagher, and is the only cover line in blue, making it seem the most significant out of the existing ones. It also has a yellow drop shadow making it seem even more important. Furthermore, beneath it the slogan reads “rocks biggest gob”, which would make the reader think it would be an interesting article as the impression that is given is that he would not be careful with what he says and cause a stir.

In the Stone Roses cover line, the word exclusive is used again, drawing the reader in further by creating the ideology that being able to read the information in the magazine is something to be marvelled.

The main image is of popular artist Liam Gallagher. He has been airbrushed and professionally photographed in order to enhance his reputation and make him seem like a superior worth reading about. However, in the medium close up shot, he does not look happy in the photo, and this pose and facial expression may have been chosen in order to make the reader think he would be including dark secrets and emotions in the article about him and his private life. The central image takes up most of the page and is used as a background to cover lines and everything else. This suggests that he is the most important feature in the magazine and that it will mostly be about him, which identifies with people who like him as an artist especially, and further draws in people who just like music and reading the magazine. His full name is not mentioned on the magazine cover, just his first name, which makes the article seem more informal and friendly and creates a sense of friendship and bonding between Liam and the reader.

The pictures in the right hand top corner are added in, in a messy fashion and positioned at angles to make the magazine seem more edgy and busy, representing the magazine.

The main colours of the magazine are yellow and light blue, making the magazine seem lively and bright and fun to the audience.

The overall layout of the contents page is very conventional in the sense of it’s structure and it’s colour scheme, which is evidently the same in most previous copies.

The contents page has a clear layout as each article is ‘sectioned’ to make it clear to the reader which page to find each article on. The numbers are also in red to make them stand out to the reader and to make it even easier for them. However, in the band index, it is the inverse, with the bands being in red and the numbers being in black; perhaps this is so the page doesn’t look too boring and the colour red makes the bands seem more exciting to the reader, because their eyes will automatically be drawn to the chunk of red text when all other text is in black.

The main colour scheme of the magazine is red, white and black with a picture that normally consists of mostly the same colours to match the scheme. This makes the magazine seem sophisticated and stylish. Also, because it is conventional throughout past issues of NME, it makes it seem timeless and comforts the reader to see the same colour scheme.

The contents page is one of the first thing that the reader sees when looking at a magazine, with the exception of the front cover and a possible advertisement. So, it is clever to put a subscription for the magazine ad on the contents because the reader can decide just from the articles whether they like the magazine or not, and if they do they may be more likely to subscribe because the word “just” makes the price seem like a bargain.

The name and logo is at the top of the page showing it’s significance, and the largest and boldest of the rest of the text on the page. It is also the only text in red apart from the band list, further showing its importance.

The band index is a consistent feature of NME, and is handy to the reader, because they can skip straight to their favourite bands or artists.

It is evident that this is an indie/rock/alternative genre due to the colour scheme and layout. If it was a pop genre, the colours would be a lot brighter and the layout would not be simple. However this layout and colour scheme is effective and suits the target audience and genre. The target audience are most likely older teenagers and young adults, with a slight male skew; this is evident through the colour scheme and layout and male pictures.

The edgy font for the quote reflects the genre of the magazine immediately. It could also reflect Lily’s personality and attitude. It takes up the majority of the page and hints to the reader what the article is going to be based on. The white text on a black background is has similarities to a newspaper, which suggests that the article is also going to be based on Lily Allen constantly being in the public eye.

The colour scheme is consistent throughout NME, including using red for significant text such as Lily’s name. Lily herself also fits in with the colour scheme, sporting a red chequered shirt, black hair and dark eye makeup. Her eye makeup and hair colour and style reflects the target audience and the type of people that they are: she looks stereotypically “rock”.

By the size of the title and medium shot of Allen, the reader can tell that she is the main feature of the article. This article will have the most attention drawn to it because it is the main one and therefore likely to be the longest and most interesting. Also, when flicking through a magazine, the large image will be seen by the reader and possibly encourage them to purchase and read the magazine. In my magazine double page spread I would like to use a similar style and layout because I think it’s effective and simple; it still gives the reader information but uses the image and quote/title as the main focus of the spread, which is positive because I think the image and the title are the things that draw a reader in.

The colours on the page all match, making it more aesthetically pleasing to the reader and more comfortable to look at it, due to the colours harmonising rather than clashing.

Not a lot of text is included on the double page spread, compared to other main features; this suggests to the reader that it is going to go over more than one page and encourages them to turn to the next page, where it is likely an advertisement will be placed – the reader will notice the ad whilst looking for the next page to the main article and possibly subconsciously view it as positive, if they are enjoying the article at that time. However, they could be so engrossed in the article that they completely dismiss the ad because they want to continue reading.