Analysis of similar or contrasting magazines

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Review of a double page spread- RockSound

Front cover of the magazine issue

On the double page spread there was 15 paragraphs each averaging 85 words per paragraph; this totalled to 1282 words.

The target audience for the magazine is 16-24 year olds, who have an open-minded approach to music. The text mentions the label Beggars Banquet where they released their previous three records. It also mentions director Andy Morahan and goes into detail about other band's work he has been involved in and 14th floor signing. The whole article is about the release of their new album 'only revolutions' and how they feel about success. The double page spread also follows them on their filming of 'The Captain's' music video.

Although this is an interview it has not been set out like a conventional one. Instead it is a write up of the interview including the quotes directly. The article is informative as it details what is happening at the studio; the music video creation. It takes a light hearted approach and uses colloquial language to create a friendly persona.

• Opens with some lyrics of the song
• The opening sentence is very long using a lot of commas, almost creating a list. It creates an image of the band as a whole by introducing the lead singer
• Lots of use of adjectives for detail 'extravagent, expensive, video.'
• Uses maeterial verbs 'laughs Simon' so the reader can imagine the band's emotion
• Another long sentence to detail the success of the album 'Puzzle.'
• Use of colloquial language 'dude or dudette' engages with the reader
• Personal opinion is used 'releasing the incredible full-length that was 'puzzle'
• Dialogues is used throughout the article 'yeah, with four lighting guys,' laughs Simon. It's not a traditional interview style but is set out as continuous prose
• Humour is also used 'seemingly lots on their way to a Hells Angels- meets- hills have eyes convention.'

Layout of the double page spread

The article is in two columns with the other pge taken up by an A4 image of the band. Quotes are taken from the article and are used to separate out the blocks of text. Also a textbox is layered on the top of te A4 image containing a part of the interview that is not related to the main article; about the music videos.

Codes and Conventions of a contents page

I have chosen two contrasting magazines to see how the codes and conventions differ with the target audience

NME contents

Background- White and red with stripes, black text.

Layout- Columns with images on sides and contents on the other. Logo in the top left so is the date. Heading is at the top of the page. Extracts from magazine in top right. It is 3 columns; Editor’s letter/ contents/ selected extracts from magazine.

Types of images- Collection of images on the front pages. Small thumbnails in contents page. Bigger thumbnails in right hand column. Larger image above those, an image of the editor by the editor’s letter. Two small images by the heading. In total there are 11 images.

Reader profile- Music is an important role in their life. Mainly males, whole magazine are based on music; no fashion or beauty. Interested in everything music.

Editor’s letter- Uses collective pronouns, rhetorical questions. It includes a page number to look at. Mostly about indie genre.

Style of language- Colloquial language, various argot, this makes it seem friendly, conversational.

X-factor contents

Background- There is a white background, no other colours are used, the colour comes from layered images

Layout- The page is split into two. The left hand column contains the editor’s letter and the right hand column contains the images and the contents page. The logo is in the top left hand corner just above the editor’s letter.

Types of images- The editor’s letter contains an image of the editor. There is also a large thumbnail image of Joe Mcelderry. There is also two smaller images in the bottom left page. In total there are 4 images on the contents page.

Reader profile- The majority are females, this is because X-factor the majority watched by females; also the magazine contains many pages about fashion and beauty. They are most interested in the show and there is not much about general music.

Style of language- The language is colloquial, more friendly and conversational. Interacts with the readers by using personal pronouns.

Codes and Conventions for a Music Magazine Front Page

These Codes and Conventions make it clear to the reader what the target audience is. I will foucs mainly on NME as it targets the same audience.

Pop (Smash Hits)

§         Colourful themes, range of different colours

§         Predominant image

§         Masthead takes up top 3^rd of the page

§         Barcode with price, issue and date on it

§         Not much text, sell lines catchy

§         Text used is more simple and not that of music language (e.g. soprano, bass, tenor)

§         Lots of thumbnail images

Classical (Classic FM)

§         Plain colours, just two colours (white and red)

§         Barcode with price, issue and date

§         Predominant image

§         Simple tagline

§         A more bureaucratic style of language (language more advanced)

§         More music language used e.g. the use of soprano. Different names of instruments

§         Range of thumbnail images

§         Masthead takes up top 3^rd of the magazine overlaying the image

Rock (Mojo and Rocksound)

§         White, black and red colour scheme on the front cover.

§         Predominant image

§         Masthead covering the whole top 3^rd of the page

§         Barcode with price, issue and date

§         Thumbnail image in top corner

§         Sell lines are simple. Easy to understand.

§         Colours are dark, contrasting to the background

§         Masthead covering top 3^rd of the page

§         Image layered over the masthead, takes up most of the page

§         Short catchy tagline

§         Different thumbnail images

§         List of bands included in the magazine

§         Uses quite harsh sounding words for the tag lines

Metal (Metal Hammer)

§         Dark colours mainly black, deep red and white

§         Tag line under the masthead

§         Masthead takes up top 3^rd of the magazine

§         Predominant image

§         No sell lines (list of bands that feature in the magazine

Indie (NME)

§         Quite bright colour scheme consisting of 4 different colours.

§         Image covering most of the page

§         Barcode with price, issue and date.

§         Sell lines are quotes from inside the magazine, inside the articles. Not much information involved in sell lines, leave reader wondering what the article is about.

Wide range audience (Q)

§         Plain simple colour scheme, two different colours (red and white)

§         Predominant image

§         Masthead takes up 3^rd top right of the magazine

§         Simple tagline

Summary of Research

     People wanted a glossy Rock Indie magazine (which I will call unsigned) every fortnight priced at around £2.50- £3. The colour scheme they wanted for the magazine was black and blue and either grey or white.

     For the front cover most people wanted the main image on the front cover to be a group of either/ both gender with around 2 or three thumbnail images included on the front cover. They wanted the thumbnail images to be that of bands, instruments and action shots from gigs.

     On the contents page most people read the editor’s letter to get an expectation of the magazine and to become more personal with the editor.

     On the double page spread they wanted a band interview that had equal amounts of text and images. They didn’t want articles that had no relation to the magazine such as beauty or articles that had too much text. They also would like the article to have opinions but to not be too opinionated.

     For the advertisements they wanted the magazine to advertise gigs and TV shows, music albums, band rehearsals, instruments and festivals

Questionnaire Results

From the results there were various magazine names suggested:

unSigned, Buzz, Music Monthly, Music Central, Undercover, RockIn die, Doing indie, Rock Indie (2 people said this), Weekly Music, Listen Loud

Would you be interested in buying a rock indie magazine:

 75% of people said yes and 25% said no

How much would you be willing to pay for the magazine:

More people said £2.50- £3

Would you read the magazine weekly, fortnightly or monthly:

More people said fortnightly

Is there a spefic gender you would like to see on the front cover:

Most people said that they wouldn't mind either or both

Would you prefer the main image to be a solo artist or a group:

63% said a group picture, 37% wanted a solo artist

On average how many images would you like on the front cover:

Most people said one main image with two or three thumbnail images

What images would you like to see:

The majority of people said images of the bands but they also wanted to see instruments, action shots and images relating to albums

What kind of style would you like the magazine to be glossy or non- glossy:

87% said glossy, 13% said non- glossy

Which 3 colours would you like to see on the house style:

The most popular combinations were grey, black and blue and white black and blue

Do you read the editor's letter:

75% of people do and 25% of people don't

If you read the editor's letter what influences you to read it:

News about upcoming events, An idea of what to expect in the magazine (6 people said this)Gains a personal opinion on the editor, get to know them more (4 people said this)Idea of how the magazine was produced.To read the editor’s opinion on the magazine

If you don't read the editor's letter what would influence you to:

A personal story on the editor, more humour and news about upcoming events

What types of articles would you want featured on the double page spread:

Everyone wanted something related with the band, and many wanted an interview

On a double page spread what would you want the image to text ratio to be:

People wanted equal amounts

What articles would not attract your attention:

Things that do not relate to the magazine (7 people said this)Facts, Ones with loads of writing as it may become boring (2 people said this)Highly opiniated articles with no care for the readers. (2 people said this)Boring, pointless ones. Ones with too many images as they may not give much information. Gossip on the band, spilling their secrets (2 people said this)

Would you like opinionated articles to be featured in the magazine:

62% said yes and 38% said no

List 3 sell lines that would influence you to buy the magazine:

Exclusive Interview (5 people said this)Band info (2 people said this)Price, First hand news, Never seen before (3 people said this)Gossip (2 people said this)Quality, New release inside, Delving in deeper, Your music, Behind the scenes, Real stories (2 people said this)Eye catching, Fantastic interview with… (2 people said this)Introducing the latest craze, In here

3 key words that you would expect in a magazine:

Band names (7 people said this), UK, Unsigned (2 people said this), Real, Grunge, Exciting, Music (2 people said this), Exclusive (2 people said this), New, Best (2 people said this), Inside, Release, Underground, Latest, Hottest, Festival (3 people said this), Chart, Real, Interview, Gossip

Are there any specific advertisements you would like in the magazine:

People wanted gigs and TV shows, music albums, band rehearsals, instruments and festivals

Would you like any freebies included within the magazine:

75% of people wanted them while 25% of people didn't

Music Questionnaire

I composed a questionnaire for the music magazine to understand what aspects people would like to see in the magazine, and on the front cover. This questionnaire covers all the features that I would like to find out on the contents page, front cover and double page spread.

The music magazine that I am creating will be based on a rock/ indie genre

:)

Questionnaire for a rock and indie genre of magazine

1.       What would you call a new music magazine for the rock and indie genre?

__________________________________________________________________________________

2.       Would you be interested in buying a rock/ indie magazine?

Yes	No

3.       How much would you be willing to pay for the magazine?

Under £1	£1.50-£2	£2.50-£3	£3.50-£4

4.       Would you read the magazine weekly, fortnightly or monthly?

Weekly	Fortnightly	Monthly

5.       Is there a specific gender you would like to see on the front cover?

Male	Female	Either/Both

6.       Would you prefer the main image to be a solo picture or a group?

Solo	Group

7.       On average how many images would you like on the front cover?

__________________________________________________________________________________

8.       What images would you like to see?

__________________________________________________________________________________

9.       What kind of style would you like the magazine to be- glossy or non-glossy?

Glossy	Non-glossy

10.   Which 3 colours would you like to see in the house style?

__________________________________________________________________________________

11.   Do you read the editor’s letter?

Yes	No

12.   If yes, what influences you to read the letter?

__________________________________________________________________________________

13.   If no, what would influence you to read the letter?

__________________________________________________________________________________

14.   Which types of articles would you want featured on the double page?

__________________________________________________________________________________

15.   On a double page spread what would you like the image to text ratio to be?

More images	More text	Equal amounts

16.   Which articles would not attract your attention?

__________________________________________________________________________________

17.   Would you like opiniated articles to be featured in the magazine?

Yes	No

18.   List 3 sell line that would interest you into buying the magazine?

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

19.   Give 3 key words you’d expect on the front cover of the magazine?

__________________________________________________________________________________

20.   Are there any specific advertisements you would like to see in the magazine?

__________________________________________________________________________________

21.   Would you like any freebies included within the magazine?

Yes	No

It would be helpful for any male or female aged between 15- 30 to fill in this questionnaire. Thankyou :)