Thursday, 1 April 2010

Student Magazine - 1st attempt a Magazine Front Cover

Deconstruction of a Music Magazine Frount Cover

Deconstructing Music Magazines


Mojo magazine front cover:
Mojo is a popular monthly magazine published in the UK. The magazine genre is classic rock music and the main audience is older teenagers both male and female aged between 16-25.
The masthead is very bold and it is the biggest font on the whole page, this makes it stand out from the other things that are on the cover. Black and white are very contrasting colours, the black background and the white font makes everything very eye-catching and bold. The masthead font is quite contemporary this would appeal to an older teenage audience.
The banner is advertising a CD that comes free with the magazine; this would draw people in as they are getting something for free. The banner also shows features that are included in the magazine.
The font used for the headline has a corrosive effect this makes it stand out from the other fonts used on the cover as they are bold block letters. The cover lines are all similar in appearance as they have the same colour, size and layout of fonts- this adds a more uniformed look to the front cover which in turn appeals to the reader more.
This cover does not have a left third where the cover lines are manly placed, instead they are evenly spread over both sides of the page. The cover line which says “we’re back…” and has a list of bands that are making a come back, this would interest readers as it would been seen as big news in the music world.
The main cover image is of Iggy Pop, this is relevant as it relates to the main headline. The angle of the image is slightly from below (worms eye) the subject. The shot is a medium this allows the figures bare torso to be show as he is not wearing a top in the image. The figure has been cut out so that the background of the image behind him is the black base of the front cover. The image has been edited so that the figure has a slight sepia effect, this means that the image stands out from the other colours on the page as they are black, red and white and the image is an orange/red/yellow colour. The expression on the mans face is quite blank as he is not paying attention to the camera and his head is turned slightly to the side. The mans body language and the fact that the man is holding a microphone shows quite clearly that the picture was taken at a live performance. The fact that the man has no top on makes him recognisable by the audience as he is well known for performing topless.
The cover overall is very appealing as the colours, fonts, and main image are all very eye-catching, this would draw the reader in and make them want to buy the magazine. The free CD that is advertised on the cover would also make the target audience want to buy the magazine as they would be getting something that interests them for free. The cover lines at the sides of the page show what is inside the magazine, this would also persuade the audience to buy the magazine the articles inside would interest and appeal to them.

Music Magazine Double Page Spread Plan

Music Magazine Contents Page Plan

Music Magazine Front Cover Plan

Deconstruction of a music magazine front cover

Monday, 1 February 2010

Music Magazine Research

This research will give me a chance to learn more about music magazines and their history. I will look at the owners, publishers and distribution process of two music magazines.

Mojo

First published in October 1993 in the UK Mojo is a popular monthly music magazine in the United Kingdom. The magazine focuses on the genre of classic rock music and is aimed at the late teen/ early adult middle class audience.

The magazine is owned and published by Bauer. The editor of Mojo is Phil Alexander. The magazine has featured artists such as The Beatles, Bob Dylan, Radiohead and The White Stripes.

The magazine often comes with a free CD that is linked to a feature or band interview in that issue.

NME

New Musical Express (NME) was first published in March 1952 and is now a popular music magazine sold published weekly in the UK. NME focuses on music genres such as punk, rock, grunge, hip-hop, R&B and pop. The magazine is aimed at a younger teenage audience both male and female.

The magazine is owned and published by IPC Media (Time Inc). The editor of NME is Krissi Murison. The magazine has feature artists such as Oasis, Kurt Cobain, Blur, The Libertines and The Strokes.

Today the magazine is well known and very popular amongst teenagers.