This document analyzes two articles from the music magazine NME. It discusses the forms and conventions used in the articles' design, such as images, fonts, headlines and pull quotes. It also examines the intended audience of NME, which includes young music fans who want to stay informed about new artists and albums. Finally, it describes NME as an important UK publication focused on indie rock that has a bold style and is well respected by fans of the genre.

1. Article Analysis
Ciara Oakes

2. Article 1: Crystal Castles / NME

3. Forms and Conventions…

4. One single, large image. The
image is bright and eye-catching,
with bold colours such as the
electric-blue present in the
female’s hair. This contrasts with
the black and white of the
background and the clothes that
she and the male are wearing.
The use of props such as the cigarette
that the female is lighting and her skull
ring sets a daring and anti-social tone.
The female band-member makes
eye-contact, creating a personal
connection with the audience. In
addition, the male looks away,
creating a further contrast.

5. A large, bold and
underlined headline
draws the audience’s
attention. This headline
doesn’t include any
Capital letters and flips
Around the letter ‘s’ in
‘twisted’ – an interesting
twist on convention.
Information is presented
in 3 columns.
A pull quote is used
to entice the
audience to read the
whole of the article
and set the
article’s tone.
Graphics are
used to break-up
different
texts on the page.
The date and page
number are used to
inform the audience
of the issue and to
direct them through
the magazine.
The font size for this
article is
particularly small,
indicating to the
reader that it will
be rather detailed. This
also presents the
article as professional.
Different coloured fonts
are used to highlight the
band’s name and the
journalist writing
the article.

6. Article Analysis 2: Alt-J / NME

7. Forms and conventions…

8. A simple black font is used for
this article’s headline. The
capitals and colouring make the
headline stand-out, catching the
reader’s eye. Also, this headline
is positioned in the top-left of
the page: the first place the
audience begin reading. Thus,
it is important that the journalist
makes the headline interesting,
providing enough information
for the audience the grasp
the article’s content yet not
enough for too much to be
given away.
This wide-shot shows the
band facing the floor, going
against the convention of
making eye-contact with the
audience.
This article uses red to
highlight the band’s name
and the name of the journalist.

9. A small font size is used not
only for practical purposes
but to give the article a
professional finish.
A drop cap is used to capture the audience’s
attention. The use of red is bold and is used in
conjunction with graphics and other areas of text
around the page.
This article is presented
as two columns that are
broken-up by the pull-quote
present in the middle of
the two columns. The
pull-quote is used to
entice the audience to read
the whole article and to
some-what give an overview
of the article’s content.
Bold graphics are used to
break-up the text and highlight
specific information, such as
a band member’s name.
Multiple images are used in this
article, providing the audience with
an insight into “behind the scenes”
of the band members’ lives. There
are also images of live performances,
indicating that the article is likely to
include content on a tour/previous
live gigs that may be poignant to the
band.
The date, page number and title
of the magazine are used
to inform the reader of the
specific issue, the institution and
to direct the reader through the
magazine.
Captions are included to
describe the images
presented and provide more
information on them.

10. Audience….

11. • Young-people and adults, age 17-24.
• Interested in live music, new albums and
artists/bands.
• Want to keep up-to-date with everything that
is occurring in the music industry – the
audience want to be informed.
• The audience also want to be entertained –
new pictures or information on their favourite
artists/bands, for example.

12. Representation…

13. • ‘NME’ is seen as a bold, edgy and – at times –
risky publication. For example, the use of
swearing, sexual content and violence. This
article highlights aspects of such edge, such as
the title ‘twisted firestarters’, cannoting
danger, violence and anti-social behaviour.

14. Institution…

15. • ‘NME’ is an important publication within the
UK – it is one of the market leaders, along
with ‘Q’ and ‘Mojo’.
• It’s indie-rock focus is well respected by fans
of the genre, whom turn to the magazine for
the latest information on the indie-rock world.
• It is a recognised brand, with such additions as
the ‘NME Awards’.