Analysis of Power Play Music Magazine.

2. FRONT COVER

3. FRONT COVER
Colour
The two main colours used on the front cover are black
and white, these colours contrast strongly so the
magazine cover stands out. At the bottom of the
page the designers have placed an orange, red,
yellow and blue banner containing the names of the
bands that are mentioned in the magazine.
Design
The front cover has quite a simple design, with only two
coverlines and a band name as their main
coverline. All the coverlines are either in black or
white, this has been done so the text contrasts with
the background and is easily legible.
Bevel effects have been used on the masthead and the
strapline, most noticeably a brushed metal effect
and chrome/silver colouration on the strapline.
I think the main coverline, simply ‘Iron Maiden’ has been
chosen because it is the most widely known artist
featured in the magazine, and it may attract the
widest range of people.

4. Images
There is only one photograph on the front cover, which
consists of two of the members of Iron Maiden. It is a
medium long shot and they are using a direct mode
of address.
I think this image has been chosen for simplicity and to
show that their magazine features an interview with
the famous Iron Maiden.
Actor Composition
Both of the subjects in the photograph are using a direct
mode of address. They are shot in a ‘medium long
shot’.
They both have stern and serious looks on their faces,
this is perhaps emulating their audience, or the
audience’s desired image.
They are wearing modern clothes, and one of them has a
tattoo on an exposed arm. These features have
been accentuated to show the reader that the people
in the picture are fashionable and are people they
might aspire to.
Some Emotive language has
been used to entice the
reader. Words like ‘riveting’
and ‘raves’ are used on the
cover, these are both things
that would appeal to the
target audience.

5. Wording
POWER, PLAY, ROCK and METAL appear on the
front cover. All the text is in capitals to draw the
reader’s attention. A bevel and metal effect
have been added to some of the text for the
same purpose of drawing attention to the front
cover. This is useful because it may help the
magazine get noticed -> picked up ->
purchased in a newsagents.
Final Impression
The magazine has a simple yet effective cover,
whose content will immediately stand out to
anyone who has an interest in it. People who
are not interested in Iron Maiden would
probably not have a large interest in this
magazine.

6. CONTENTS PAGE

7. CONTENTS PAGE
Colour
Not much colour has been used for the contents page.
The POWER PLAY logo from the front of the
magazine is present. A grey font has been used for
the subtitles. It is noticeable that the page contains
lots of orange and red as it contains lots of images
of pages contained in the magazine, many of which
use a red-orange-yellow gradient for the title.
Design
This contents page is slightly rugged in my opinion. The
articles contained in the magazine are highlighted
on the contents page, the title of the article is given,
along with a paragraph summarising the article. The
folios have been printed quite small under the
subtitles. On the left of the page the magazine gives
you a comprehensive list of all the bands mentioned
in the articles. There is a significant amount of white
space.
The folios are not shown individually but are grouped
into 4 sections: on the cover; hot this month; live
and dangerous and regulars.

8. Wording
All of the subtitles are in full capital, whereas
almost all of the text is in plain black sans serif.
The designers have been sure to have the text
contrast with the background so that it is easily
legible. They have given minimal information
on the page folios – this may be fitting
considering the target audience will probably
want to spend minimal time reading the
contents page.
Final Impression
My overall impression of this contents page is one
of haste. It is clear that a professional designer
has made this page however it looks like their
work was rushed, as I think it is a little rough
around the edges. Again, women are
addressed poorly as on the contents page,
women are outnumbered 23:1.
All the images on the
contents page are smaller
renditions of pages
contained in the magazine.
These are representations
of the original pages.

9. DOUBLE PAGE SPREAD

10. DOUBLE PAGE SPREAD
Colour
Lots of black has been used on this dps. This
creates a mood of sadness that fits well with the
self-deprecating band name of the subject.
Black often connotes sadness, gothic themes
and, to some extent, teenagers.
Design
This page is formatted oddly; its title is at the
bottom, along with the strapline and the picture.
About 3/8 of the dps is advertisements. Most of
the interview is on the left page, whereas most
of the right page is advertisements. An
introduction has been written in the top left,
which may help the reader discover where they
are meant to start reading the interview.
Relatively simple fonts and styles have been
used. Somewhat counter-intuitively, the body
copy uses a sans serif typeface, whereas the
introduction uses serif. This is slightly odd as
large blocks of text are slightly easier to read in
serif.

11. DOUBLE PAGE SPREAD
Images
Besides advertisements, there is a single image
of Whitfield Crane – looking cool, lighting a
cigarette. This juxtaposes with his band
name – ugly kid Joe – because he is, in fact,
not ugly. Medium close up shot. This may
represent his transformation from an ‘ugly
kid’ to a person people may aspire to.
Actor Composition
Whitfield is not addressing the audience at all.
He is concentrating on lighting a cigarette.
His hair has changed from his previous style
– it is now combed back and sleek. This may
be rejuvenating for Whit because people may
never have seen him before and may be
taken aback by his ugliness – or lack thereof.
This magazine is
owned by Mark
Hoaksey and
distributed by
Warners Ltd.

12. DOUBLE PAGE SPREAD
Wording
As is this magazines style – formatting is minimal
and the page is crammed full with text. There
is an introduction that is in slightly larger
yellow text in the top right corner, however
most of the other text is white and smaller.
The title of the article, Angry Kid Joe, is large,
in yellow and below Whit, along with the
smaller white tag /strapline.
Language
The interview is written colloquially in the first
person, which gives a more relaxed feel to
the interview. This may have been used to
make the magazine easier to read and
therefore the content of the magazine easier
to consume.

13. DOUBLE PAGE SPREAD
Overall Impression
I have chosen this dps because it has more
formatting than just text, a picture of the band
and a title – which is what almost all of the
other dps’s in this magazine consisted of.
From reading the introductory paragraph, I am
lead to believe that this magazine is less
professional than its counterpart, however is
still a well organised and easily legible
double page spread.