Double page spread analysis

1. The colour of blue has been chosen because of its link to the British flag and the indie genres association with British culture. Furthermore, connotations of blue include calmness, confidence and
is stereotypically identified with males which links with the personality and presentation of indie bands. In the top right hand corner their is a box of text saying ‘The Radar Issue 2011’ This topic is
unique to NME, showing that this is an NME double page spread. This topic contains articles about new up and coming bands and the text of ‘They’ve been together for under a year, but are
already being talked up as the biggest guitar band of 2011’ supports this. The article is therefore about their recent success and rise to fame referencing their sold out gig at Oxford. It then talks
about their songs more in depth and how hardly any of them are no longer than 2 minutes long compared to other bands music that takes 2 minutes to reach the chorus. Overall, the article gives
the audience a good insight into the band's music and increased popularity.
The main image is of the band ‘The Vaccines’ and they are positioned as a group together.
They all have neutral facial expressions reflecting the indie-rock genre of music and are
using direct address to connect with the reader, making the reader feel more connected to
the magazine. The proxemics of the band show that they are close due to their close
positioning, however each band member's position varies showing that they are
independant. In addition, the presentation of the artists shows them slouching and their bad
posture is used to emphasise their nonchalant attitude and linking to the traits of indie
music which includes, calm, relaxed and chill. The main image spreads over the first page
and a quarter of the second page representing the importance of the main image. The
image features dull colours with a light but dirty backdrop, reflecting the genre of music.
The main image uses the iconography of guitars
to symbolise the indie-rock genre of music and
attract the target audience. The costume of
the artists are casual and dull reflecting
their grungy music and by wearing casual
clothes connects to the reader. The artists
hair is scruffy and messy and they have
stubble showing that they are laid back and
further emphasising the genre of music.
This is different to some issues as they have more than one image on a double page spread. On this
double page spread there is a reasonable amount of text in comparison to other NME double pages
where there is sometimes less and sometimes a lot more. To make it appear to be an NME magazine
This is a standard double page spread in NME, featuring The Vaccines as the cover artists. The
double page spreads layout and structure will tend to follow the same trends each week, however the
artists featured changes. In this double page spread the body copy is presented in the same form as
a newspaper whereas in other issues it has consisted of an interview layout. In this page spread the
main image is very large and there are no other images featured on the page.
The colours that dominate this double page
spread include black, blue and white. They
reflect the indie-rock genre of music and
therefore represent the band. These colours
are used throughout NME magazines to
maintain brand identity.
A similarity, however, that this double page
spread shares with other page spreads is the
use of coloured shapes splashed around the
page and its text. I think that this makes the
page look more intriguing and entices the
audience to read it.
There are various blue shapes used on this page
to make it more attractive and fascinating,
appealing to the reader. They have been used to
add some colour to the dull background and
make the reader more excited. The colour of
blue has been chosen because of its link to the
British flag and the indie genres association with
British culture. Furthermore, connotations of blue
include calmness, confidence and is
stereotypically identified with males which links
with the personality and presentation of indie
bands.
the brand name has been displayed in the
bottom right hand corner along with the page
number and the topic of ‘Radar’ is unique to
NME magazines.

2. The fonts and typefaces are very simple and easy to read. This links with the
idea of the double page spread having a simplistic look and also makes it
more enjoyable for the reader as they can easily understand it.
The title of this double page spread is made to appear bolder than the other
text. This is because it is very important as this piece of text introduces the
band and gives the reader knowledge of what the article is about. Making
the title appear bolder attracts the reader’s eye first and has therefore been
purposely done to draw the reader’s eye.
The typefaces and fonts used are usually very similar to the typefaces and
fonts used in other NME double page spreads and therefore, maintains
brand identity.
The shot is a medium shot which is a convention of magazine images
The double page uses large blue letters at the beginning of the article. This is similar to the layout of a
book or gossip magazine. The large letter has been used to stand out and make the reader read the first
sentence and ultimately the rest of the article. The article is not long in length as the target audience would
prefer to look at images than read. The colour of blue has been chosen for its link to the British flag and its
connotations. It has also been chosen to continue the colour scheme of the magazine and make
everything link and flow.
The text within the article is presented in the format of a newspaper article
making it similar to what the target audience may be used to reading. The
text is both black and blue making it more interesting and the blue has also
been used to highlight an important quote from the band and the journalist's
name ‘Jamie Fullerton’. Other quotes from the band have been used within
the articles text. The main colours of blue, black and white have been used
because they are represented in the british flag and therefore link to indie
music.
The title of this double page spread is ‘The Vaccines’ and is introducing the
band featuring. The font is very plain and simple which links to the idea of
this double page having that simplistic look and makes it appealing to its
target audience of young men that, stereotypically, don’t care about their
appearance. The black title colour also portrays the indie-rock genre and
attracts the target audience.

3. The title of this double page spread is
‘The Teenagers’ and introduces the band
featured in this magazines issue. The
teenagers are not a hugely known band
so having them on the ‘Radar’ section of
NME shows they are a new up and
coming band in the music industry and
this will appeal to the target audience who
will be interested in reading about them.
The word radar has been significantly
chosen due to its meaning to detect and
find something and in relation to music the
target audience would understand that it’s
based on new and upcoming bands that
have been recognised by NME. Due to
the topic of ‘Radar’ being used in every
issue a loyal NME reader would
understand the use of this word straight
away.
The title consists of bold, black text
which is highlighted blue to give it an
edgy look. The font resembles an old
school style font and so links to the band
as they are called ‘The Teenagers’
Overall, I like the title as I think the font
relates to the band and the text stands
out on the page but also blends in with
the colour scheme making the double
page spread attractive for the reader.
The main image that has been used is an image of the band featured in the article and shows their youthful laidback approach to life. The band
look young as they are in a bedroom all casually laying on top of a bed and there are posters of women sexually posing in the background
depicting a typical teenage boys bedroom. The location of a bedroom has specifically been chosen because this is where teenage boys,
stereotypically, spend all their time. The location of the bedroom therefore links to the band members and the band name. The artists’ costume is
casual with the stereotypical image of skinny jeans, t-shirt, trainers and messy hair. The artist’s costume outlines their laidback behaviour and
additionally with the position they are in shows their casual, scruffy look also relating to the fact that they are teenagers. The proxemics of the band
show that they are close but not attached to each other. Their slouching posture and individual positioning shows that they are individuals,
emphasising their independence as teenagers. The use of the colour black used within the band members costume links to the genre of indie-rock
and adds to the shadow and dark lighting of the image, emphasising the dark, grungy appearance of the band.
The main colour that dominates this double page spread is blue. This
colour is an NME magazine convention, as blue resembles indie music
and so links to the target audience of NME. The colour blue has also
been used to attract the male target audience and 4 of the 5 images
feature males signifying that this double page spread is aimed more at
males than females.
Some iconography that features in other images
on the double page includes a mic, stage lights
and graffiti. These features of iconography
connote the indie-rock music as they symbolise
music and the graffiti represents the grungy,
messy look and sound of the genre of music. The
graffiti also links back to the band being
teenagers as this is an activity teenagers are
commonly known to participate in.
The main image is positioned on the first page to be the most eye-catching part of the double page spread and
appeal to the target audience who will enjoy viewing images of their favourite bands. Having the image on the
first double page is a convention of a double page. The other images have been put into a box and made a
smaller scale. They have also been anchored with the text that states what bands are being shown in the
images. The use of the bands names such as ‘The Rascals’ and ‘Crystal Castles’ is appealing to the target
audience and draws their attention to the text. The text ‘Everyone's talking about...’ is an anchor for the images
giving the reader an understanding that the following bands are very popular at the moment.
The title is in capital letters, grabbing the
reader’s attention and introducing the band as
loud. Using capital letters is a convention of
NME magazines when introducing the band
featuring in the magazine. I like the use of
capital letters as I think it makes the text look
bolder and aesthetically pleasing.

4. The messy/chaotic background of
the main image connotes the
lifestyle of the target audience as it
is a convention that the readers are
likely to be very easy going and
have a ‘not caring’ attitude. This
allows the double page to connect
with the reader.
There is a puff that reads ‘NME LOVES’ that is presented in a spiky bubble and
makes the double page look more interesting and fun. The text in this bubble is
also in a different font making it unique to the rest of the text and more intriguing.
By saying ‘NME LOVES’ in the puff the reader will feel that they should also love
the band as much as the magazine as they are a loyal customer of the NME
magazine. double page. Within the box are
other bands and information
about them which will interest the
general target audience of NME. I
like the use of the box as I think it
makes the double page look more
busy and is aesthetically pleasing.
This double page spread shares
some similarities with other NME
double page spread magazines but
also has some unique aspects. The
Title of the double page is usually
the featured band and is always
presented in capitals. Furthermore,
the main image is
always spread across the first page and occasionally across some of the second page. Furthermore, shapes and text boxes are
used to highlight extra and key information such as the ‘NEED TO KNOW’ and ‘EVERYONE’S TALKING ABOUT’ boxes. In addition,
key quotes are usually highlighted and enlarged in the middle of the articles text to draw the reader’s attention and tease them into
reading the body copy. Lastly, the topic that the double page spread is within is always displayed in the top left hand corner of the
first page and is always presented in bold capitals. All these aspects of the magazine are repeated each issue to maintain brand
identity. Something that is unique about this double page includes the small puff containing the text ‘NME LOVES’. Furthermore, the
body copy is usually larger than this body copy and uses up a large amount of the second page.
The Teenagers are using direct
address to connect with the
audience. Direct address is also
used in one of the other images to
establish a connection with the
reader
There is a large boxed off section in this double page spread
that gives it a clean, crisp look making it more digestible for
the reader. The use of black connotes indie-rock music and
draws the reader's eyes to this section of the
The magazine also connects with the reader through the use
teenagers which is the age group of a large section of the ta
will feel they can identify with this article and the band featur
band. We’re The Teenagers and that’s all they think about’ s
the target audience. This is further established through the s
as these are words used to associated with teenagers. Lastl
giving us a warm feeling this week’ further develops the you
text to connect with the young audience.
The standfirst is the second largest piece of text underneath
emphasise the characteristics of the band and making a con
have been teenagers and can relate to the band. The standf
the reader and establishing a connection between the reade
In certain areas, including the puff and dark text boxes, this
double page spread has been designed as different to other
double page spreads. This is so that it stands out and is more
intriguing for the reader. The uniqueness of this double page
spread from others allows it to be less boring and more
exciting for the reader. This will attract the readership to read
the magazine which , ultimately, is the goal.