This document analyzes magazine covers and contents pages from different magazines. It discusses design elements like mastheads, photos, fonts and color schemes. Across the various magazine examples, common techniques are used to draw attention to the main story and artist while integrating other stories and information. Photos primarily feature the lead artist prominently in the center to attract readers. Fonts, colors and layouts are coordinated across pages to maintain a consistent brand and appeal to the intended music genre audience.

1. Magazine Analysis
(3 front covers, 3 contents pages and
3 double page spreads)
Madelaine Gee

2. Masthead: Bold and red and
fits with the theme the
magazine always follows. It is
well seen to an extent where
it doesn’t interfere with the
main story and people
involved. It is noticeable
enough so the reader knows
who the magazine is by.
Other stories: Quote by a
band from same genre as
Arctic Monkeys. Shows that
the magazine is based on the
Alternative Rock genre and
has insight into the lives of
the artists which is thrown
through the use of the quote.
The quote itself is a bit of cliff
hanger. What did the press
get wrong? What’s the truth?
And the only way of finding
out is to buy the magazine
and read it.
The shot of the band is a
medium close up group shot.
This is because the members
are layered making it clear
that the man in the forefront
(Alex Turner) is the lead singer
and could, debatably be seen
as the most important and
well-known member of the
band.
Bar code: It shows the price of
the magazine and could be a
factor to consider when
deciding whether or not to
buy the magazine. The people
on the front will be the most
decisive factor but the price
arguably contributes as well.
Main Story: The most
significant part of the article
is the line underneath the
name and latest album name
saying “The Final Chapter”
which could be taken as the
final chapter of their careers
together. This is ambiguous
but will again make the
person looking at the
magazine who is perhaps a
fan want to find out more
The background is in LA and is
supported by the smaller text
at the bottom and LA is often
known for wealth and fame
and this embodies the band
and how well they’ve done
for themselves.

3. Masthead: It is situated behind the
band but not so much that is
unreadable. The font used is bold
and white and stands out well on
the chosen dark red background. It
also has an exclamation mark to
make it that much more poignant
despite being slightly hidden by
You Me At Six.
Other Stories: The other stories are
to do with bands like Paramore
which are very similar to You Me At
Six and are from the same genre.
This shows that the magazine
mainly focuses on one genre and
will therefore be appropriate for
people who like that genre.
The main story: The focal point
of the magazine is You Me At Six
“taking over Kerrang” and so the
story heading is splashed across
the front of the page indicating
it’s importance.
Main picture: All 5 members,
and as with the NME cover the
lead singer is central and the
others are behind him. This
indicates him as being the most
popular so therefore will spike
sales more so than if one of the
less known members was at the
front which is good marketing on
behalf of Kerrang!
One off features: Used to entice
people into buying the product
but is different to other editions.
Colour theme: relatively harsh
and bright, much like their
music.

4. Soft colour theme with gold
to match the instruments
and blue to match the
“BLUEsy” theme. This is
attractive and appealing to
the consumer as it fits with
the genre of music.
Well known names there to
influence people into
buying the magazine. If the
reader isn’t a big fan of the
person on the front it’ll
show there are other
people to be excited about
on the inside. Conversely as
they are within the same
musical genre it’ll appeal to
people who like Jazz/Blues
in general.
Interesting and
attractive font situated
behind the main
picture so as not to
overshadow the main
part of the article. The
masthead is also
legible but not
overpoweringly in the
foreground.
The trumpet in the
main picture is a hint
at the type of music if
the reader hadn’t
already worked it out
from the rest of the
clues on the magazine
cover. As well as this
jazz and blues music is
often associated with
the deep south so
links to the culture of
the person pictured.
The picture is a mid shot
and shows the top quarter
of the man’s body as well as
him holding a trumpet. This
is because nothing else is
needed to make the front
cover appealing. Its
simplicity is pleasing in
itself.

5. The title “NME Contents” fits
with the colour and font
scheme that happens on the
front cover of NME magazines
and undoubtedly throughout.
The red is quite a strong
character and matches the
genre of music talked about
through the magazine.
Similarly the font is bold and
again fits with the genre.
The main story has a picture
that keeps in with the content
of the story picturing the lead
singer (Alex Turner) of Arctic
Monkeys and other relevant
stories are put to the side and
given the appropriate sub-headings.
The most
important story is pictured as
being the biggest so the size
of the story’s font and how
much coverage it has relates
to importance.
The other stories are also to
do with bands and people
that are within the same
genre as the main story.
The shot used of Alex
Turner is a long mid-shot
that shows him both
playing the guitar and
singing showing he is an
instrumental and perhaps
the most significant
member of the band
considering he is in the
foreground and there is
only one other member on
display and he is blurred
into the background. This
also indicates that Alex
Turner is the most famous
and popular of the group so
will attract the most
readers/buyers.
Advertisements at the
bottom that promote the
magazine further and
provides information on
how to contact them and it
is quite clear and easy to
read as well as being
relatively bold so is seen
well but doesn’t overpower
the main focus of the page.

6. A band is pictured with, again,
the lead singer in the middle
of the shot with them all
holding a Union Jack. This
could indicate they are a
British band or that they are a
foreign band doing a tour in
Britain. The name of the band
is subtle and just noticeable
that people who don’t know
them can easily find out.
The other stories featured in
the magazine are listed below
the main story and image
clearly indicating they aren’t
the main selling point of the
magazine. The bands and
artists listed are of the same
genre as Framing Hanley so
fits well with the magazines
target audience.
The colour scheme fits the rest
of the magazine as it is bold
and the complimentary colours
are appealing as the black
backgrounds allow the yellow
text to pop.
There is also 5 free posters
within this issue which is a
feature that doesn’t usually
appear so is a one off making it
a good reason to buy the
magazine. There will most
likely be a different offer with
each issue which is a good
marketing technique.
There is also a note from the
editor which is a nice touch in
terms of keeping in touch with
the fans of the magazine on a
more personal level.

7. Like with all the other
contents pages the main
and most important story
that the magazine thinks
will sell the magazine is
the largest. It also has a
picture that takes up most
of the page illustrating its
importance.
The issue date is in the
top left which is a
relatively prominent
placement so shows how
in date the magazine is.
Adele, is a very famous
singer who has done very
well for herself so makes
a good impression on the
magazine in that they can
get interviews with such a
popular and current
artist.
The other stories are
situated away from and
not as big as the main
story. They are in an
organised list and have
bold headings drawing
the reader to see what
they’re going to read
about more quickly than
reading the whole thing.
The extra features in the
magazine are mentioned
bottom right so again
don’t interfere with the
more important story but
show the reader what
they can look forward to.

8. There are different pictures of Pixie Lott that show
different sides to her. One being a soft smile showing
she’s sensitive as well as a more sensual hair
grabbing shot. They show she can appeal to men and
woman making her a versatile artist.
The colours are bright and
compliment each other
well and mix well with the
pop genre she’s a part of.
The writing is spaced
out and easy to read
and has things
placed around the
page to make it
interesting to look
at.
At the top left there
is an advertisement
for her new album.
There is also
comments on the
right hand side as
well as scores out of
5 for the album and
an overall score of
21/25. This is meant
to show that the
quality of the album
is very high.
The pictures of
Pixie Lott are all
the same shot so
don’t show much
variety.
There is a running theme of
“perfection” throughout the spread.
There is a question as the title asking
how perfect she is and it is answered
on the other side saying she is pretty
much perfect”.

9. The colour scheme fits with the genre of music
that Nicki Minaj is involved in which is arguably
quite poppy. The pink and black illustrate
attitude and also match the colour of her lips
and her hair.
The text is quite weighty but is
split up by pink and black bold
subheadings showing what
part of the article is about
what.
Her outfits is a zebra print body suit that again illustrates
her animalistic attitude and qualities, perhaps indicating
she’s wild. She is also wearing a ring saying “icon”
showing she thinks quite a lot of herself and perhaps
inspires quite a few people.
The font is bold
and quite
noticeable ,
much like her
appearance and
personality. Her
puzzled face
matches the
faces she pulls in
her music videos
which makes it
relevant.
Her name is placed behind the
picture of her and the writing at
the side carefully moulds around
her showing the article revolves
around her quite literally.

10. The main title is a quote from Lily Allen showing she has an
attitude and doesn’t seem to mind what people think.
However this does beg the question as to why she’d do an
interview to clear up misconceptions if she doesn’t pay
attention to what people think.
The text is quite
bulky and
doesn’t have
anything
breaking it up
which indicates
it is a piece that
is like rant
which is
supported by
the underlying
tone of anger
and annoyance
in the title.
Her style is quite different to the music she produces. She is wearing a red
and black checked shirt and has black cropped hair with a lot of dark and
harsh eye makeup. This would usually indicate she’s a rocker or punk
which also matches the dark title and splashes of red over the article.
However the
music she
creates could
be classed as
pop. This is an
unusual
portrayal but is
intriguing.