The document analyzes the covers and content pages of several rock music magazines, including Kerrang, Rock Sound, and Spin. Some key techniques used across magazines include iconic mastheads, bold fonts that convey energy, and imagery of recognizable rock artists to attract readers. Color schemes often incorporate darker tones like black, white and yellow. Cover lines use short, attention-grabbing phrases. Content pages provide a taste of articles through quotes and small images while maintaining the magazines' visual identities. Overall, the analyses show the magazines employ similar styles that align with perceptions of rock music to effectively target their audiences.

1. Magazine cover analyse

2. Analysis of KERRANG cover
The masthead of this magazine is
well known and iconic and stands out
with the bold font, it is also written in
Capitals which can be associated with
shouting, which fits in with the rock
and roll culture. The use of
onomatopia can be associated with
the sounds heard in a rock track or
when a guitar is strummed . The
cracks in the masthead can be
associated with the reckless
behaviour of some iconic rock idols
All the cover lines are written in bold
edgy fonts which complies with the
rock stereotype
Slang words are used on the cover
‘WTF’ to relate to the young target
audience who may read the
magazine.
The main image features green day
band member Billie Joe who is a
recognisable face to anyone who
listens to rock music, is it a medium
long shot which shows his guitar and
his out fit which is dark which goes
with the stereotype of rock
A plug is used to make the cover look
crowded showing all the content
The colours yellow, white, and black
are used because the are dark and
deep and can be related to
stereotype of rock but also keeping it
looking professional and simple
Header is used to show other
features that appear in the
magazine, the yellow and white font
is effective against the black
background helping it stand out to
readers.
The band ‘Green Day’ is anchored to
the main image and written in bold
white writing similar to the masthead
because they feature in the main
image but also because they are such
a well known rock band.
Pull lines to attract readers
Short snappy texts are used for cover
lines
The barcode shows the price of the
magazine, which is reasonable of a
rock magazine
The website shows the magazine is
up to date with technology
expanding its potential audience
Featured pictures of other relevant
artist show the readers what else is
on offer within the magazine, but
doesn't distract attention form the
main image

3. Analysis of ROCK SOUND cover
The main image features the well known
band paramore with female lead singer
Hayley Williams at the front as she is the
most recognisable member of the
band, as well as attracting paramore fans
, female fans will be drawn to the cover as
Hayley is a successful woman singer who
they may look up too. Her posture and
facial expression are confident as she
poses in front of the other male band
members which goes against the
stereotype that men are the dominant
gender
‘PARAMORE’is anchored to the main
image and looks as though its written in
graphitti which goes with the reckless
stereotype of rock. Along with this is
cover lines tell us about the band. The use
of a Tag ‘special and Revealed…’ is used
to entice readers , making them feel they
wouldn't get this in any other magazine
The use of sell lines help describe the
magazine so readers have an insight in to
what people think of it, but also what its
about
The background they have chosen is
simplistic therefore not attracting
attention away from the band memebers
and cover lines, but also helping the font
colours stand out
The masthead for ROCK SOUND uses a
thick bold font, which is recognisable from
a distance, but also individual to the
magazine, the main image slightly cover a
letter in the masthead , but readers would
still be able to identify the magazine
The header features' all other things
available to readers, it is positioned
in the top left to attract the readers
eye,
Positioned in the ears of the magazine
is a promotion in a black circle, telling
readers they can ‘WIN YOUR BAND
OPENING’ which can be seen on store
shelves,
Smaller images are used to show the
readers other bands that may feature
without distracting from the main
image
Slang words such as ‘ EPIC’ are used
to relate to the younger target
audience who may understand
The magazine only uses a minimal
amount of house colours keeping it
looking professional and simple .
The website is featured beside the
barcode to relate to readers who are
up to date with technology

4. Analysis of SPIN cover
The masthead for spin uses two
contrasting colours, red and white to
enhance the words. It is also placed to
the left of the magazine so on a shelf it
can be seen by readers.
The use of grey for cover lines, makes
the masthead stand out making the
‘SPIN’ logo even more recognisable
Serif font is used though out the
cover, showing it to be a professional
style magazine,
The use of tag lines are used such as
‘SPECIAL’ are used to entice the
readers in to buying the magazine for
the special edition that’s available
The cover line anchored to the main
image is written in the same font as
the masthead. Implying to readers this
is a main story
The rock star used for the main image
may attract female readers as he is
seen as a attractive member of the
band
The main image slightly covers the
masthead, however the magazine has such a
recognisable logo that readers don’t need to
see the full masthead
In the main image Gerard is wearing
a leather jacket which is stereotypical
clothing for rock stars.
Direct address from chemical
romance band member Gerard way
makes the reader feel as though he is
looking straight at them
Without revealing who the ‘stars’ are
it gives a sense of mystery and that to
find out they must buy the magazine
The house colours which in this case
are red, white and black, keep the
magazine looking professional but
also keeping to the dark stereotypical
colours of rock.
The price of the magazine is shown by
the barcode, at 4.99 this may seem
expensive for a magazine but clearly
the target audience is willing to pay
this price.

5. Analysis of KERRANG content page
The overlapping of the images
suggested the magazine is busy
and packed
The magazine offers the magazine to be delivered to
your door, therefore furthering the convenience the
magazine offers
Here they have used small pictures of
the pages within the magazine to give
the audience an idea of what's
inside, therefore intriguing them but
making it small enough so it does take
attention away from the main image .
The date and issue number is
shown, which can be helpful to any
readers that may collect the
magazine, but also employing the
magazine is successful enough to have
so many issues.
By following the magazine masthead
on to the contents it constantly
reminds the reader of what magazine
it is.
Cracks in the masthead connotes the
edginess of rock. But also using the
black and yellow help it stand out from
the black background
The house colours of the magazine are
also carried on throughout the
contents page.
The use of yellow font on a black
background help the writing stand
out, implying the content has some
importance. But also connotes the
colours of danger and show that can
be related to the attitudes of
stereotypical rock stars
By having a small note from the editor it
gives the readers a more personal touch
allowing them to hear from the
producers of the magazine themselves.
Writing within shapes s used to draw
readers attention , by implying the
content inside is important or
interesting
The main image is of famous band
member slash, who would be
recognisable to any rock genre
listener. He is wearing
sunglasses, therefore giving a sense of
mystery.
The magazine includes small snippets
of information which can be easily
read but also give the reader an idea
of each article

6. Analysis of SPIN contents page
The spin logo is carried on onto the
content page to remind the reader of
the magazine but to also make it
more recognisable and memorable
They use a continues font showing
the magazine to be professional and
consistent. Which breaks the usually
conventions of rock magazines .
One of the band members within the
main image is laughing implying that
rock is a fun exciting genre. Therefore
reaching out to ‘wannabe ‘rock stars
The date and edition is shown below
the logo, to remind readers this is a
monthly magazine , hoping to
encourage them to buy it regularly
The main image shows well known
band ‘the strokes’ sat in a group in
what looks to be a run down
area, showing the band to be down to
earth, the fact that even with fame
they still choose to go to places like
this. Therefore making a connection
with the readers
The use of one image makes the
magazine simplistic which helps focus on
the main image of the band, enthuses
the importance of their feature in the
magazine
Boxes around cover lines help attract
attention to it, but also shows it has
some sort of importance
A small quote from the article is used
to give the reader an Idea of what the
articles about but to also grab their
attention, this is a common feature of
a contents page
The outfits worn by the band are
stereotypical of rock bands, with their
leather jackets. Certain member's are
wearing sunglasses which connotes a
sense of mystery
By using ‘big names’ which are relevant to the
genre such as ‘the kills’ attract readers attention
as they be aware of these bands and therefore
more likely to buy the magazine

7. Analysis of Rock Sound contents page
By following the magazine masthead
on to the contents it constantly
reminds the reader of what magazine
it is.
The main image on this contents page is
of well known rock band GREEN DAY
which helps show the genre of rock
The left hand of the content page
contains cover lines, that may only
contain one word which are easy to
read therefore catching the readers
attention
Within the main image Billie Joe the
main band member is looking directly in
to the camera which shows confidence
but also helps build a relationship with
the reader making the magazine more
personal
The selling line is shown on the content
page to remind the readers what the
magazine is about. Using the word
‘attitude’ goes with the stereotype that
rock stars can be seen as reckless and
anarchists
Rock sound only uses house colours
red, black and white which are individual
to the magazine but also seen as
stereotypical colours for the genre
The date of the edition is shown to
remind the readers this is a monthly
magazine , hoping to encourage them to
buy it regularly
The content shown includes:
interviews, reviews and news about the
bands relevant to this sub genre, this
relates to the young readers who want to
be up to date with the latest bands.
The rating in stars in the bottom left
hand corner shows the readers the
rating this magazine has received, this
being a high rating means people may
be more likely to buy it.
The contents page includes various other
pictures that are included in the
magazine , implying there is a lot
included in the magazine
The overlapping of the images makes the
content looked cramped and busy, which
could be reflective on the content of the
magazine
A small quote from the article is used to
give the reader an idea of what the
articles contains without boring them
with too much information

8. Analysis of double page
The main image shows a female band member on top of
the bunny, this goes against the stereotype of woman to be
passive and against violence. Instead showing her as
powerful, which could attract females readers
The headline for this double page uses a bold font
written in white on a red background therefore making it
stand out but also using colours that could represent pain
and blood, which links to the main image
Bellow the Headline there
is a little information about
the article and the
band, the red font is
placed on a black
background to help the
information stand out, the
bands name is also written
in a completely different
colour to show the
importance of the band to
the article
The outfits worn by the
band are casual, which
helps the readers relate
to them, therefore
making them feel more
involved
The main image is an action shot where
a band is tackling down someone
dressed as a bunny, the aggressive
behaviour is stereotypical of the genre of
music they play.
Beside the main image they
use a small quote from the
article, this does not only
allow for easy reading but
encourages them to read on
to see what the articles
about.
Within the article they have
put certain words in a
different colour, e.g ‘To date’
this tands out to readers lets
them know that the
information in the article is
about what the band is doing
now, making them want to
read it
Below the columns they sum up in
pictures what the Rolo tomassi are
made of, they appeals to the younger
target audience who may be less
concerned with reading but also adds
an element of humour
The first letter of the article is in bold and a different
colour to the text, this is a common convention of a
double page spread, as it stands out from the rest of the
text. Secondly the columns are split on to three, this is to
help break up the information making it easy to read, but
also keeping it neat.

9. Analysis of double page
the main image shows the female
artist looking into the camera, this
could make the audience feel more
involved as they would feel as if she's
looking at them
the article is split into 2 different
columns which makes it easier to read
but at the same time makes it appealing
to the eye keeping up the professional
look
Her clothing is stereotypical of
the rock sub genre, as she is
wearing a leather jacket and lots
of jewellery which makes her
look glamorous and feminine
Alliteration is used in the
headline to make it catchy which
makes it memorable to readers
The headline is written in black
bold font, which contrasts with
the grey background, but also
matches the outfit of the artist
which helps readers make a
connection between the main
image and the article
Her stance and facial expressions make her
appear powerful and seductive which goes
against the stereotype of woman. This could
attract both female and male readers who
may look up to her, or be attracted to her
The main image of kaytie storey takes up most
of the double page spread, showing to the
readers how important and popular she is as
an artist. It also shows woman in a positive
way as she is a successful artist featured in a
popular artist
They have highlighted section
of the article that may appeal
to the reader, this appeals to
the younger target audience
who may not want to read long
articles
The use of pink font can be
associated with the femininity
of the artist, but also to stand
out from other content
By using the word ‘armed’ it could be
associated with weapons, implying she has
power and control over what she's doing.
Which goes with the reckless stereotype of
rock. But also challenges the stereotype of
woman to be vulnerable

10. Analysis of double page
The headline uses a grungy rugged kind of
font, which can be related sub genre of the
band. Which therefore appeals to the
audience of rock lovers.
The main article is broken up into
columns making it easy to
read, they have also put in bold
significant parts of the article so
readers can pick up on it
The main image takes up most of the page
along with the name of the band, this
because people into this genre will recognise
their name or faces and want to read the
articles
The headline is similar to that
of the masthead of rock
sound, This therefore keeps a
running theme throughout the
magazine
A quotation from the article
is placed in the centre which
makes easy reading for the
target audience, but also
shows the stereotypical
rebellious attitude of the
band by using swear words
in the quote
The bold red colour of the
headline makes it stand out
but also adds to the theme of
the page which shows the
genre of grunge
In the main image on of the band
members, is turned to the
side, with hair covering his
face, this divulges a sense of
mystery
‘two’s company’ is a play on words as it
relates two the two band members who are
each others company.
The use of direct adress makes the readers
feel more involved, but also adds to the
scary/horror genre they are trying to portray
The quotation from the article is
put on a white background
making it stand out so its eye
catching to readers, but also the
rugged rough edging can be
related to the grunge sub genre
This double page spread automatically connotes
the genre of Grunge, which therefore appeals to
the readers who like this genre of music, the three
house colours of red, black and white are those
that would be associated with the dark/deep genre
of grunge.
The pale white faces of the band
members contrasts with the black
background, but go with the
horror/grunge style of their music.
Portraying the individuality of the
band members

11. BAUER MEDIA
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Bauer Media is a multinational media company founded in 1875 by the BAUER
family which circulates over 38 million magazines on a weekly basis. Bauer
media has been responsible for big names such as: KERRANG, Q, and MOJO.
Headquartered in Germany, BAUER operates worldwide providing many
countries with a variety of different genre magazines
I think BAUER media would be an appropriate publisher for my magazine, as it caters
to a range of readers that may be interested in my genre of magazine, for example
KERRANG is a similar sub genre and has become the worlds biggest selling rock
magazine. Therefore the advertisement and reputation of the publisher will encourage
readers to buy my magazine as they will be aware of the success of current magazines
However a problem with using BAUER media as my publisher would be that their
could be a risk of cutting sales of mother music magazine or my magazine not getting
enough sales because magazines such as ‘KERRANG’ are also published by this
producer.

12. KERRANG
I have chosen to do Rock as my sub-genre. A popular magazine that
specialises in this sub genre is ‘KERRANG!’
• KERRANG is a UK based magazine that is dedicated to rock music. It was
published by Bauer media group in 1981. where is specialised in the new
wave of British heavy metal and the more recent rise of hard rock.
• After the first launch with AC/DCs Angus Young on the front cover the
magazine was released fortnightly but demand for the Rock magazine
grew, and in 1987 they published the magazine weekly
• Over the years KARRANG grew in popularity as they followed the new
musical trends that emerged over the years such as thrash magazine, and
grunge.
• The target audience for this magazine is people interested in the subgenre of rock either male or female.

13. MOJO
• MOJO
• MOJO is a Alternative rock magazine that was
published in 1993 by EMAP, but then later taken over
by BAUER magazine.
• The monthly magazine focuses on the classic rock
genre, by having iconic artists such as Bob Dylan and
john Lennon, they focus they on the reckless, heavy
metal artists that would be featured in magazines
such as KARRANG. Targeting more towards the
classic rock lovers, who are passionate about the
sub-genre

14. Q magazine
• Q magazine is a popular music magazine that
was first published in 1986 by EMAP but then
later taken over by BAUER.
• The monthly magazine offers reviews and
rating on: albums, festivals and films
• The magazine is up to date with all popular
artists and their music
• More recently in 2008 Q launched a radio
station to focus on the popular music genre

15. Similar magazines
• Rock sound
ROCK SOUND has inspired my chosen sub genre as it features similar artists and music that I hope to
include in my magazine. Although this magazine focuses more on the heavy metal rock, mine will take a
different approach and go more alternative rock based bands. But still including some of the heavy rock
bands to appeal to a wider target audience.
ROCK SOUND tends to use a different colour font each week, making it appear original, where as mine
will keep the same colour masthead each week, allowing the readers to recognise the masthead which
therefore will make my magazine more memorable
I feel that the edgy boisterous fonts and images tend to edge more towards a male target audience
whereas mine will cater for both sexes, I will do this by including bands with both male and female
artists and articles that appeal to both sexes

16. SPIN MAGAZINE
SPIN magazine has been an inspiration for my magazine as it features bands of a similar genre such as my chemical
romance, paramore and green day.
Out of all the magazines I have looked at SPIN is what I would like to base my magazine on as it features more
alternative rock rather grunge or heavy model, which is a main feature of other rock magazines,
Spin keeps consistent font which is a feature id like to include in mine, as well as this the colour schemes and layout
does not overpower the main image, but instead keeps the magazine looking professional and stylish.
Another feature of SPIN that appeals to me is that the magazine features a variety of bands that appeal to a wider
target audience, it does not only focus on certain stereotypical rock bands. This is something I would like my magazine
to include.
I like how distinctive the SPIN logo is which makes it memorable to readers, this is something I will look into when
designing my masthead.
A common trait of spin magazine is that they use mid/long shots as their main images where as I will experiment with
using close ups as my main images
Overall I feel that SPIN uses many techniques such as direct address, a variety of house colours which make the
magazine so successful.

17. Target audience
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Age range-16-25
Gender-Male and female
Sub genre-Alternative Rock
Class-Middle class or working class
Jobs-creative jobs, or still In education
Sexuality- All types
Bands they may be interested in:
My chemical romance
BLINK182
Paramore
Greenday
Foo fighters
My target audience
have unique taste
in clothing, with
aspects of the rock
stereotype

18. Question ideas
•
What magazine would you be most likely to buy? KERRANG, ROCK
SOUND, SPIN, Q, ROLLING STONES(quantitative)
•
How often would you buy a music magazine?
DAILY, WEEKLY, FORTNIGHT, MONTHLY, NEVER(quantitative)
•
What would you be willing to pay for a music magazine? 50p-99p, £1.00£1.99, £2.00-£2.99, £3.00-£3.99, £4.00-£4.99, £5.00+(quantitative)
•
How often would you like a music magazine to be released?
WEEKLY, DAILY, MONTHLY, FORTNIGHTLY(quantitative)
•
In your opinion what appeals to you most about music magazines? (quantitative)
•
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What genre of music do you like the most? (quantitative)
In your opinion what do you like to see featured in a music magazine? (Qualitative)
•
What bands would you like to feature in a music magazine? (Qualitative)

19. Research in to history of genre
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Rock originated in the united states in the 1950’s, it was first associated with a form of dance
, and a word that connoted sex in some songs. Rock is said to have started by the
combination of other genres of music such as: Jazz, blues and R&B.
Since the 50s rock has become incredibly popular genre of music with the influence of rock
and alternative rock bands such as: the beetles, ACDC, rolling stones, and black Sabbath and
the more the more recent bands such as: foo fighters, green day and Paramore
Many new sub-genres of music have come about which originate from rock such as:
Grunge
Screamo
Heavy metal
Alternative rock

20. Possible names and bands for my magazine
TERMOIL
SLAM
Names
MOSHPIT
MAYHEM
FRENZY
ENVY
Possible bands to feature in my magazine
RAMPAGE