2. EYE FLOW The eyeflow on the cover is designed to draw as
much attention to the cover model Jay-Z as
possible. The NME logo and badge next to it
guide the eye down towards Jay-Z’s face and
from there it trails off. There is a distinct absence
of kickers to emphasize the model. As this is one
of the first NME covers to feature a hip hop/Rap
artist they are making clear the importance by
leaving room around the model. Even the other
model is looking directly at Jay-Z so if you
happened to glance at him you would be re-
directed to Jay-Z.
3. MASTHEAD
The font is large and blocky
The masthead is only 3 making it readable and
letters, despite the full title modern. The blocky
being ‘new music squared off edges and
experience’ this is not only points again associate it
catch but also easy to spot. with modern culture. The
lack of white space is
significant because it is a
modern feature, seeming to
reflect the business of youth
and popular culture.
The masthead is
found to the side of
the cover and often
is overshadowed
by the model or a The square shape of the
kicker. letters connotes pixels and
the television culture of
today. Where as the sharp
edges give the magazine a
grungy untamed feel, which
is important as NME prides
The way the font is embossed itself on being new and
The colour red connotes danger, fresh, which in the music
makes it feel as if it is on a
which is something that indie industry is usually indie
poster for a band or outside a
bands also associate
venue. It’s large block font and music, with a grungy feel.
themselves with. It also makes
multiple outlines make it stand
the magazine stand out on the
out from the background.
shelf.
4. KICKERS
The magazine itself only features one main coverline. And that relates
to the cover image. The addition of Jay-Z to the cover is a big change
to NME’s usual features of indie bands and so this cover was left bare
to emphasize this change. The kicker itself fits in between the two
models on the cover and features Jay-Z’s logo font, which lightly serif
but still bold. The order of the writing doesn’t fit to a grid, which is
something often found in indie magazines, words will be placed
seemingly randomly. The text is coloured the same red as the
masthead, which is unusual as often magazines will have a secondary
colour for kickers however in this case it is necessary to associate Jay-
Z with the institution to make the readers feel comfortable with this
diversion from their common features.
BADGES
NME often put their kickers into badges that are placed over the cover.
This is not only space saving but adds to the grundgy feel of the
magazine. Badges came into fashion with the punk rock era in the late
70’s and have recently made a comeback through modern punk bands
such as my chemical romance. Musicians often wear badges as
accessories on their jackets and so by placing them on the cover Nme
is directly associating itself with these new indie bands. Similarly they
add to the chaotic nature of the cover by straying from the usual linear
square cover principals.
5. LANGUAGE
The NME cover is filled by ‘music slang’ words which
are often only understandable to fans of the indie genre.
‘Cribs’ is a word which was associated with the hip
hop/rap genre because of it’s common use in songs and
also the MTV television show ‘cribs.’ The word cribs also
connotes these overly extravagant dream houses, and
by featuring this on the cover NME is associating itself
with MTV and their large youth following as well as the
idea of luxury. ‘Smash’ again connotes this idea of
danger and rebellion which is a topic of indie music. By
putting this on their cover NME are associating with not
only indie music, but also the idea of music as a form of
rebellion. Similarly the idea of rebelling through music
and the noise of it is exploited in the badge describing it
as the ‘loudest’ collaboration. This again identifies with
the target audience as being outrageous and to an
extent appealing. The bands are also often referred to in
short hand, for example rock band Biffy Clyro are
labeled ‘biffy’ which means only an avid reader or music
fan would understand the coverline.
6. COLOUR SCHEME
NME has a unified colour scheme that is commonly found throughout
the music genre of black red and white. The masthead features all of
the primary colours of the homepage. The colours Red and Black
heavily connote this idea of rebellion through music and give the
magazine an edge to it. Similarly by having the serif text in red
shows an absence to conform, hence why they are flipping the
conventions of using Serif text on it’s head. The magazine uses
white for it’s background, which is mainly to emphasize and highlight
the darker colours and the red. Similarly if you look at the model Jay-
Z he is wearing black glasses. The colour black is important because
it is a symbol of Jay-Z’s musical heritage and the culture he so
proudly represents. As the blur between bootleg music and
commercial hits becomes more blurred This colour connotes not on
jay-Z’s heritage but also is significant in the punk band revival. Black
is a mysterious colour and hence why often bands will have dyed
black hair and even black eyeliner.
7. MODEL
Unusually for a music magazine the model is
wearing shades, this is because readers usually find
it easier to be more drawn to eyes. However again
NME is flipping these conventions around by directly
opposing them. It again enhances the institutions
image, but also connotes power. Jay-Z seems more
impressive because of his ability to hide away from
the reader. The glasses also connote Jay-Z’s
musical upbringing, whereby the colour black is seen
as being fashionable and a way of being apart from
the rest of society. Again the model is looking directly
at the reader which is in many respects to make
them feel connected with the institution and the
magazine. Jay-Z is smiling which is unusual in the
music magazine genre, as often artists have certain
personas to uphold. In the case however, as it is one
of NME’s first rap focused cover it could be perhaps
to make the consumer feel less unsettled by the
change. Similarly the clothes Jay-z wears are casual
and he looks more comfortable and at home. The
secondary model acts like more of a pointer towards
JAY-Z. he is facing directly to the side so that we
almost don’t see any of his face. The insignificance
of the secondary model is highlighted by the fact that
he is not only smaller that Jay-Z but also he is
masked by a lot of the coverlines and the masthead,
whereas Jay-Z is left untouched.
