EXSISTING NAMES

AND MASTHEADS

By Ellie-Mae Davies

The original name of this particular music magazine was ‘New Music Express’ however this did later get shortened into the acronym NME, only for the reason that it benefitted the readers as it was easier to remember, as well as being more recognisable

Previously ‘New Music Express’ held a rather formal tone to it almost preventing the reader from building up a personal interest with the magazine due to the persona it portrayed not meeting the needs and expectations to this specific genre of music.

Music, especially the genre that NME focuses primarily on relates to rebellion and destruction, thus when the name was condensed it was not following the conventions expected and so the company was seen as attempting to create a new brand image that conducted a less formal persona.

Additionally the name of the magazine NME almost resembles ‘enemy’ this is intentionally done in order to reflect the type of music that they feature being destructive and occasionally threatening. Alternatively mirroring the way in which the readers act, as they can be stereotyped as being rather unconventional and so potentially have the ability of carrying an alternative attitude to what is expected.

As for the image that is created, the large letters visually engage the reader as it is one of the first elements that they would notice. The fact that it is bright red and outlined in white also contributes to this idea. Red is an extremely vibrant colour with connotations of danger, again reiterating the way they are trying to gain the attention of unconventional music fanatics.

They withhold a masthead which includes just one single letter creating a sense of simplicity and mystery, as well as being recognisable and memorable. Previously the magazine was named ‘Cue’ in relation to cueing a record before its ready to be played. However there seemed to be an issue of confusion as it regularly got confused with being a snooker magazine.

Although the original sound of ‘Cue’ stayed, it was now condensed into just one letter – ‘Q’, ultimately making it more prominent, especially on a newsstand rapidly increasing the chances of passers by picking it up, due to it being so easy to spot.

The font conveys a sense of elegance which gives an indication of the type of music they feature, along with the simplicity of the white ‘Q’ on a red background implies that the music that is regularly featured is mostly mainstream/traditional.

Once again the colour scheme is extremely simple with nothing too dramatic. The colour red has connotations of love and power, whist white contrasts this when representing purity as well as innocence. Ultimately creating a juxtaposing colour scheme through two contrasting colours.

Kerrang was chosen to be the name of the magazine due to the sound that a guitar makes when you strum it. From this it is clear the type of music they feature is rock, as the name is extremely loud and obstructive, fitting into the style of music.

This particular masthead ‘Kerrang’ has remained the same throughout the duration of time that it has been produced, therefore highlighting how recognisable it really is. Along side the exclamation mark at the end, almost alerting the reader that it is urgent/important information inside the magazine. Alternatively it could be reflecting how it is involved in the rock genre of music.

The name itself holds rather negative connotations related to violence, however this is also reiterated through the style used. The multiple black lines scattered over the simple white font creates a broken glass effect, giving the magazine an overall aggressive vibe. Additionally the single letters themselves are not considered smooth, they are controversially rather rough creating an unfinished look that could be considered messy. However the fact they have done this purposely may be to reflect their main target audiences outlook on music being ‘nothing is perfect’ and so why should they manipulate something to be?

The monochrome colour scheme that they have chosen is rather simple yet effective. This is because it is not too bold, that it will withdraw the readers attention from the main image.