Music Genre
What is the chosen music genre, which your magazine will focus upon?
Rock/ alternative
What are the key feautres of this genre (i.e. what are the main cultural and musical elements of this genre that give it its own individual appeal- how does this genre represent itself?) To answer this you can look at images of artists features in magazines/CD covers/ videos/ websites etc.: images of fans features in any magazines etc.: and also other areas such as song lyrics.
* The artist/s featured in the main feauture are always on the cover.
*Advertises other featured artists as coverlines.
*The colour scheme is usually dark backgrounds of some description paired with brighter and bolder text.
*The magazines usually are male dominated.
*The main image usually follows some of the conventions of other magazines imagery. (I.e. having the eyes being the main focus.)
What magazines, currently in publication, cover this genre?
*KERRANG!
*NME
*Q
*Rolling stone
*Metal Hammer
*Rock Sound
What features do they have in their magazineand how do these features tie in with their target audience's expectations of representation?
*Album reviews of the music genre. This implies to the audience that the magazine is completely about music itself.
*The main interview is always with an artist from the genre which fits the audience's expectations.
* Gig listings and reviews are always included in every issue. These relate to the target audience's expectations and main perogative as far as leisure time goes.
* Rumours and new news about bands and artists in the genre.
* Givaways usually featureing CD's, merchandise, clothing, tickets or occasionally instruments usually related to a specific band.
What additional features could you put in your magazine to make it stand out and appeal to an audience that is not already being marketed to?
*The use of upcoming, local bands to help the new generation of bands and artists.
*As the rock industry (at least in the well-known areas) seem dominated by male bands and artists. The use of more female input would makle it differential to other magazines of this genre.
Friday, 18 December 2009
Thursday, 17 December 2009
NME Cover Analysis
NME, also known as New Music Express, is a popular weekly music magazine which has been published since March 1952. It is owned by IPC Media and has a weekly circulation of 40,948. We can tell this institution is established in the way that part of the masthead is covered by Billie Joe. This is because the masthead is recognisable enough to be noticed without it being prominently in view. The colours of the masthead are traditionally associated with danger but used in the way they are they prove to be a purposely stark contrast with the bright blue background.
The main image is of the artist featured in the main coverline. The image itself is posed to represent the focus of the main article which says ''inside the mind of'' which shown through Billie Joe clasping his head and staring directly into the camera in a shocked manner. His genre of music is prominently showed through the use of a black shirt, which is covered in patches in the stereotypically 'punk rocker' manner and his sleeves are rolled up to purposely reveal his tattoos. The blue background is a contrast to the image, with blue connotations usually being of calm and tranquility whereas the pose of the picture says something different to this with him looking slightly insane.
The main coverline is in bold, white writing which is a contrast to the black of the clothing and is done this way so they are easily read. The language used within this is an excerpt of the interview which is supposedly ''inside the mind of Billie Joe.'' The quote is ''My lyrics come from a really dark place'' with the word dark implying something unhappy and perhaps awful. This is written in such a way to spark the interest of the reader and automatically make them want to read more. The other coverlines are in red with a mixture of white to mirror the masthead and make the color scheme of the front cover only really use red, white and blue. These coverlines are all large enough to be read but not big enough to take attention away from the main focus of the magazine: the main coverline and interview. These coverlines feature names of artists features elsewhere within the magazine which also sparks the readers attention as they are large and well-known names within the music genre.
Across the top of the splash is a banner with the words ''Green Day Exclusive'' which is in an extremely bold, white font to be one of the things the eye is drawn towards. This could also make a difference to who buys the magazine as in some stockists only the top third of the magazine is seen and a banner like this could grab fans of this bands attention without having to see a full cover. The word ''exclusive'' means something never before seen which is sometimes unusual with such a well established band with longevity which gives the reader expectations of what the content of the interview with this band will entail.
The cover price of NME, as shown is £2.30 which hints to me that the targeted audience for the magazine is young students who cannot afford to pay high prices for the magazines they read. This hints to me that the magazine has accommodated this through the use of lower quality printing and paper sources to allow the price to remain fairly low and easily accessible to students who are on lower incomes.
The main image is of the artist featured in the main coverline. The image itself is posed to represent the focus of the main article which says ''inside the mind of'' which shown through Billie Joe clasping his head and staring directly into the camera in a shocked manner. His genre of music is prominently showed through the use of a black shirt, which is covered in patches in the stereotypically 'punk rocker' manner and his sleeves are rolled up to purposely reveal his tattoos. The blue background is a contrast to the image, with blue connotations usually being of calm and tranquility whereas the pose of the picture says something different to this with him looking slightly insane.
The main coverline is in bold, white writing which is a contrast to the black of the clothing and is done this way so they are easily read. The language used within this is an excerpt of the interview which is supposedly ''inside the mind of Billie Joe.'' The quote is ''My lyrics come from a really dark place'' with the word dark implying something unhappy and perhaps awful. This is written in such a way to spark the interest of the reader and automatically make them want to read more. The other coverlines are in red with a mixture of white to mirror the masthead and make the color scheme of the front cover only really use red, white and blue. These coverlines are all large enough to be read but not big enough to take attention away from the main focus of the magazine: the main coverline and interview. These coverlines feature names of artists features elsewhere within the magazine which also sparks the readers attention as they are large and well-known names within the music genre.
Across the top of the splash is a banner with the words ''Green Day Exclusive'' which is in an extremely bold, white font to be one of the things the eye is drawn towards. This could also make a difference to who buys the magazine as in some stockists only the top third of the magazine is seen and a banner like this could grab fans of this bands attention without having to see a full cover. The word ''exclusive'' means something never before seen which is sometimes unusual with such a well established band with longevity which gives the reader expectations of what the content of the interview with this band will entail.
The cover price of NME, as shown is £2.30 which hints to me that the targeted audience for the magazine is young students who cannot afford to pay high prices for the magazines they read. This hints to me that the magazine has accommodated this through the use of lower quality printing and paper sources to allow the price to remain fairly low and easily accessible to students who are on lower incomes.
Thursday, 26 November 2009
Rolling Stone Cover Analysis
Rolling Stone magazine is liscensed to Wenner Media LLC whom also own editorials such as US Weekly and Men's Journal. The circulation of the magazine is 1.4 million anually and first started in November 1967. The institution is commercial and uses advertisements to aid it in making profits.
The cover has all the conventions of a music magazine, including the image. The masthead is mainly covered by the main image which shows us that it is a well known institution and recognisable in it's style which hasn't seemed to change since it's beginings, making it a trademark of sorts for the magazine.
The main image is a long shot of Lady Gaga which is blended into the pink background. The connotation of pink is femininity. The pose which Lady Gaga is in makes her seem both dominant and untouchable. Paired with the connotations of pink this gives the impression of a strong female figure. However, Lady Gaga's lack of clothes make the cover become dominated by sexual tendancies.
The coverlines are all in white fonts, big enough to be easily read but not big enough to take any attention away from the main image. The main image gives credit to the model: Lady Gaga. The language used within these coverlines is to tease the audience and entice them to buy the magazine and read the article itself. This is achieved by using the names of big celebrities.
Friday, 20 November 2009
Kerrang Magazine Analysis.
Kerrang magazine is licensed to 'Bauer Media.' It's audience is that of a working class background with an interest in rock music. We know this because the cover price is £2.20 which is cheap for a magazine of it's type. We can also tell that the main audience is men by the language used in the coverlines.
Kerrang is the leading music weekly with over 60,000 sales a week. This is represented with the masthead where the main image overlaps it in places. This shows us that the institution is known well enough to not have to show the whole masthead.
The masthead itself is in a bold, block font which is easily recognisable. This is made to look cracked, like a sheet of glass which reflects the genre of the magazine.
The tagline of the magazine is in the same space as the masthead. The tagline is effectively placed over the title but differentiated with a different color and font. This sums up the genre of the magazine in the words ''Life is loud'' which is inkeeping with the cracked effect of the masthead which now gives the ideology that it could be broken through overly loud music.
The colors used throughout the splash are variations of red and yellow. These convey the idea of sex, danger, violence and destruction which mirrors the main coverline ''Sex, Drugs, Violence.''
The main image of the artist represents the ideology of the band. Each one of them is dressed like a gang member of sorts and made to look rough and fearsome. The front members of the band are also using props in the form of weapons like a gang member would carry. This once again carries on what seems to be an ongoing theme of danger, which is reflected by the coverline ''The world's most dangerous band.''
The other coverlines, also in variants of red and yellow, are all placed to be seen but not take any focus away from the main image. These use the names of well known acts in the rock genre to grab the audiences attention. Beneath the names are then tiny snippet of the feature with them mentioned which entices the audience further.
The banners across the top and bottom of the splash are filled with yet more names of well-known rock artists to rouse the audience even more. The colour yellow is used here as a way of being eyecatching amongst the dark image and masthead.
Thursday, 19 November 2009
Music Magazine Conventions.
Music magazines, along with every other genre of magazine, have their own codes and conventions used for their splashes. These are things we take for granted on the cover and are usually always similar, if not the same.
Within the main image of a music magazine there are usually clear similarities. The image is of the person mentioned in the main coverline. Within this shot can be one face or four/five if a band is featured, however they are all focusing on the camera. Another thing sometimes used in music magazine images is the use of instruments or props along with the artist.
The masthead of a music magazine is alike to every other in the way that it appears in the top left hand corner. This can sometimes be covered in part by the main image which shows that the institution is a well recognised one.
The main coverline on a music magazine is mostly the name of the fatured band or artist from the main image. This is usually followed by a smaller coverline often paraphrasing quotes from the interview or article.
The coverlines of the music magazines are usually around the main image but not so much as to detract from it. These coverlines use a lexis of words to do with artists and bands.
Within the main image of a music magazine there are usually clear similarities. The image is of the person mentioned in the main coverline. Within this shot can be one face or four/five if a band is featured, however they are all focusing on the camera. Another thing sometimes used in music magazine images is the use of instruments or props along with the artist.
The masthead of a music magazine is alike to every other in the way that it appears in the top left hand corner. This can sometimes be covered in part by the main image which shows that the institution is a well recognised one.
The main coverline on a music magazine is mostly the name of the fatured band or artist from the main image. This is usually followed by a smaller coverline often paraphrasing quotes from the interview or article.
The coverlines of the music magazines are usually around the main image but not so much as to detract from it. These coverlines use a lexis of words to do with artists and bands.
Friday, 13 November 2009
Conventions of magazines.
A masthead is a normal occurrence on a magazine splash. These are usually in a specific typeface and very rarely change, especially not with every issue like everything else on the splash. This is because the style and typeface is significant and representative to the magazine and it's institution. The positioning of the mast head doesn't change either, it stays in the top left corner since this is the part usually visible to consumers in a shop.
The main image of the magazine splash is nearly always a shot of a person. These are centred in the middle of the splash but usually form the background of the magazine splash often too. The eyes of the model are usually central to the image and the face is in close up. The style and nature of the shot differs with the genre of the magazine, however, but is made this way to reflect both the institution and audience.
Coverlines are usually distributed around the main image but placed strategically as not to detract from the image. They are usually in smaller but still clear and concise enough to be read easily. The language used within these coverlines reflects the magazine and institution. For example: a fashion magazine would use language within a lexical field of clothes and style. A music magazine would use lexical fields around artists and bands, however, still differing with the genre of music the specific magazine is centred around. Or a women's magazine would usually have shock coverlines to entice their consumers.
Inkeeping with coverlines, there is also usually a main coverline. This has the same features of a usual coverline however, this one is very large, usually taking up about a quarter of the whole splash area. This is in a large and bold font to grab the attention of the consumer. This is usually where the main headline or article is featured as a way to encourage consumers to actually buy the magazine.
A selling line is also seen on most splashes. This is a short and snappy description of the magazine's main selling point. These, like everything else are different for each magazine in terms of language used.
A bar code is also seen on all magazine front covers, and regardless of the institution it is the same, standard bar code used by retailers.
Datelines are used on splashes. These give the month, year or issue number of the magazine, a month in advance though because magazines hit the news-stands the month before the cover date. Datelines are usually displayed with or near the cover-price of the magazine.
Model credit for the main image is only sometimes given on a splash. This depends on both the genre of the magazine and also whom the model is. If the model is a famous celebrity, for example Bill Kaulitz or Eminem, then his name would be given on the cover either in the main cover line or a smaller cover line, however if the model is merely an average woman (as seen on many women's magazines such as Take A Break or Bella) then model credit isn't usually given.
The main image of the magazine splash is nearly always a shot of a person. These are centred in the middle of the splash but usually form the background of the magazine splash often too. The eyes of the model are usually central to the image and the face is in close up. The style and nature of the shot differs with the genre of the magazine, however, but is made this way to reflect both the institution and audience.
Coverlines are usually distributed around the main image but placed strategically as not to detract from the image. They are usually in smaller but still clear and concise enough to be read easily. The language used within these coverlines reflects the magazine and institution. For example: a fashion magazine would use language within a lexical field of clothes and style. A music magazine would use lexical fields around artists and bands, however, still differing with the genre of music the specific magazine is centred around. Or a women's magazine would usually have shock coverlines to entice their consumers.
Inkeeping with coverlines, there is also usually a main coverline. This has the same features of a usual coverline however, this one is very large, usually taking up about a quarter of the whole splash area. This is in a large and bold font to grab the attention of the consumer. This is usually where the main headline or article is featured as a way to encourage consumers to actually buy the magazine.
A selling line is also seen on most splashes. This is a short and snappy description of the magazine's main selling point. These, like everything else are different for each magazine in terms of language used.
A bar code is also seen on all magazine front covers, and regardless of the institution it is the same, standard bar code used by retailers.
Datelines are used on splashes. These give the month, year or issue number of the magazine, a month in advance though because magazines hit the news-stands the month before the cover date. Datelines are usually displayed with or near the cover-price of the magazine.
Model credit for the main image is only sometimes given on a splash. This depends on both the genre of the magazine and also whom the model is. If the model is a famous celebrity, for example Bill Kaulitz or Eminem, then his name would be given on the cover either in the main cover line or a smaller cover line, however if the model is merely an average woman (as seen on many women's magazines such as Take A Break or Bella) then model credit isn't usually given.
Thursday, 12 November 2009
LIIAR
Language - this is the key language used in media. (Terminology.)
Instituion - this is the company who produce the media. How are they portrayed?
Ideology - these are ideas shown through the magazine.
Audience - this is the consumers of the magazine. How are they represented?
Representation - these are connotations of the magazine's focus shown through the full splash.
Instituion - this is the company who produce the media. How are they portrayed?
Ideology - these are ideas shown through the magazine.
Audience - this is the consumers of the magazine. How are they represented?
Representation - these are connotations of the magazine's focus shown through the full splash.
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