1.
Analysis of magazine front covers

2.
The main colour scheme that appears
on Kerrang magazine is black, white,
yellow, and red. These colours are
very contrasting and therefore stand
out well against each other. They are
also very bold colours which helps to
attract the attention of potential
buyers when browsing in shops. The
bold colours also reflects the genre of
rocky music that tends to appear in
Kerrang magazine as this particular
genre of band tend to be bold
themselves and try and stand out
from different bands similar to them.
The main header of the magazine has been cut off behind the mans head. This is interesting
as it suggests that Kerrang magazine is big enough for people to recognise it just from the
first 2 letters of the name. The rest of the letters are cut off by the image of the main person
on the cover. This shows his dominance over the magazine and shows that he is the most
important thing on the page, and all of our attention is initially drawn to him.
The graphics on the cover are all
laid out in the same way making
it easier for the audience to
access. The way that they are
all down the left hand side of the
cover makes it look
neat, tidy, and accessible.
Also, most of the pictures are
medium close ups of the
characters in similar positions
showing the type of artists that
are likely to appear in ‘Kerrang’
magazine.
The main cover line is bold and stands out against the black
background. This makes it easy for the audience to read and
can also tell them who the band are if they don’t recognise the
face. By having a large cover line it is one of the first things that
draws your eye when looking at the magazine because it is the
main selling point in this edition.
The splash image has most likely been
taken against a green screen and then
been edited to add a red striped
background behind the person. Because
the image is taken in a studio, it means
that the photographers can manipulate
the lighting to show the individual in
different ways. The light used on this
magazine is very bright, illuminating his
face to show his facial expression clearly.
He looks quite angry which is the emotion
that we tend to associate with rock bands
and bands with similar genres. The
character is also looking into the camera
which makes the reader feel interacted
with the magazine.
The use of the word ‘prize’ suggest a
competition which may also persuade
people to buy the magazine to see what
the competition is.
The whole front cover of the magazine is very busy reflecting
the content of the magazine suggesting there is a lot to read
about. This therefore entices potential customers. There are a
lot of questions used on the front of the magazine which may
persuade people to read the magazine because they want to
find out the answer. It also interacts with the audience which
may make them feel like they are part of the magazine in a
way.

3.
The font used for the name of the magazine
‘NME’ is similar to fonts used on comic
magazines. By using this font, it is attracting a
wider audience to include younger people into
the stereotypical audience of the magazine.
This therefore means more sales for the
magazine.
The use of the buzz word ‘exclusive’ in
big black letters shows the reader that
you can’t find the some content used in
this magazine in other magazines. This
eliminates competition as people will want
to buy this magazine because of the extra
content which isn’t published anywhere
else. It also means that people who don’t
read this magazine but like Green Day
and want to know about ‘inside their
secret club gig comeback’ they have to
buy this magazine which may persuade
them to move from the magazine which
they currently read to this one.
In the banner, the names of the musicians
are in a different colour to make them
stand out from the black background. The
use of the words ‘Eminem’ and ‘tank girl’
shows the readers what other content
there is inside the magazine and
persuades them to buy it by using a
question – ‘He’s back! So why isn’t
anyone excited?’ By using this question, it
makes the audience feel like they are
interacting with the magazine which will
make them more likely to purchase it.
The words ‘free’ and ‘win’ are in
different colours so they attract the
readers eye and make them way to
know more about what is free and
what they can win. This therefore
entices them to buy the magazine.
The splash image is taken at a festival and
is of the lead member of Green Day, Billie
Joe Armstrong. Although it has been taken
at a festival, the background has been
faded out to blend in with the white and
blacks used in the text. It has also been
faded to make Billie stand out against this
background which makes him look
prominent. This reflects the genre of his
band, which tends to be very confident,
and quite cocky. His facial expression also
shows his confidence and cockiness. He
looks quite angry which is a stereotype
which we tend to associate with rock
bands. This will therefore give new readers
an idea of what genre of music the
magazine is about before reading it.
The colour of the guitar ties in with the
yellows also used in other parts of the
front cover, such as the words
‘Eminem’, and ‘tank girl’ and is also
used as the background to the picture
and writing of the left hand side of the
screen. This makes the cover look
neat and tidy so it will attract readers.
The main colours used on this front cover are
black, white, red, and yellow. Green in also a main
colour on this edition which links to the band which this
edition of the magazine is about – Green day. The
storyline is all about Green Day at euro festival. The
green therefore also represents this because festivals
tend to be in fields which is surrounded by green
grass, and green forests etc.
The font used on this magazine is
all bold and nearly all in capitals.
This reflects the type of band that
Green day are. They are very
confident and bold about things.
The font used therefore is
showing us some of the
characteristics of the band for
readers who are not familiar with
this band.

4.
The name of the magazine is clearly visible in
the top left hand side of the screen with nothing
covering it at all. This means that when in the
shop, repeat buyers can find it easy, and also
other magazine readers may see it and like the
fact that it is neat and tidy and want to buy it.
There are three main colours used on the front of this magazine which
are; red, white, and black. This gives the magazine a very simplistic feel
to it making it easy on the eye because there aren’t a lot of contrasting
colours which could distract readers from the actual content of the
magazine. This therefore suggests that the stereotypical reader of this
particular magazine will be more sophisticated than other magazines of
the same genre such as Kerrang and NME.
The splash image on this magazine has
been taken in a studio against a white
background with the lighting arranged so that
one side of the mans face is in shadow
whereas the other side is brightly lit. This
could reflect the personality of the band ‘The
Killers’ showing that they can be quite caring
and affectionate but also have a darker side
to them which is shown in their more rockier
music. The picture is quite a low angle show
of Brandon suggesting that he is powerful
and has dominance over the readers. To
prove this, he has his chin up and his head
slightly turned away from the camera.
However, he is still looking into the camera
which makes the buyer feel interacted with
him and therefore feel more connected to the
magazine making them more likely to buy it.
All of the sub headings are situated down
the left hand side of the magazine again
showing tidiness. This makes it easy for
the reader to locate them which may
make them more likely to but the
magazine if they were stuck choosing
between two.
A quote is used on the front page from
Brandon to show that there may be an
interview with him inside and therefore
may make the readers want to buy this
issue. It also directly relates the person
on the front on the front cover to the main
article in the magazine.
The layout of the magazine is very busy
showing little bald space. This makes the
reader think that they are getting a larger
quantity of information than other
magazines which are less busy but
maybe have smaller writing. Or lots of
space free but a smaller splash image.
This therefore persuades them to pick
this magazine over others similar to it.
The use of the word ‘ever’ in bold capital
letters shows the reader that there hasn’t
been a record weedier in another
magazine therefore eliminating competition
and showing the readers that this
magazine can offer more than others of its
kind.
The grey writing stands out from the blue
background and is the largest writing on the
page. This shows that it is the most
important feature of the front colour because
it is the name of the band which the main
storyline is about.