Magazine AnalysisThe cover:The colours of this magazine are very vibrant and loud, giving a very “in-your-face” impression. The tone of the magazine is very bright and easily catches your eye. Due to this the mood of the magazine cover is one of importance, as though the issue of the magazine is essential and is therefore coloured in a way that will grab your attention and see that it is important. The lettering for the cover fit together very well as the fonts and styles are all linked. The anchor-text links well with the main image as they are both very loud and evident on the page. The main image is a medium close up that links to the main article directly. The font style is large, bold, bright and in all-caps, which catches your eye at the first glance and is recognisable as a rock music magazine. Both the image and anchor-text are large on the page and fit the alternative rock style together, which suggests that the

magazine is very full-on and the story will be throughout. The anchor-text relates to the main image and therefore the feature article inside. Also this magazine was released in June, and so the colours used are very vibrant to suit the summer theme. There is an evident house style that is very loud, which links closely to the genre of magazine (rock music – which is typically loud), and as said before, everything is very “in-your-face”.The cover image depicts the frontmen of Green Day (Billie-Joe Armstrong) and All Time Low (Alex Gaskarth), representing the style of music that Kerrang! Magazine is known for revolving around, and is directly linked to the feature article in the magazine. This image attracts the alternative audience that listen to the genre of music, and by representing the music and style of the alternative rock culture, the magazine is successfully attracting their target audience. The style of the image is very serious and gives an impression that the story and bands featured “mean business”. The featured frontmen are very stern in the face and are featured in a very strong and powerful pose, suggesting to the reader that the story is very important. The masthead “KERRANG!” is recognisable as a magazine and suits the house theme. The anchor-text of “This is do or die…” reiterates the idea that the story is big and important. The Puff advertising the “FIRST ALBUM REVIEW” of Black Sabbath, which appeals to the target audience and will get them instantly interested. Also there is a use of the buzzwords “FREE” and “WIN” which relate to a competition in the magazine to win “free gig tickets for a year”, which will also attract the target audience. In my opinion, this magazine will stand out on the shelf as it is loud, colourful and contains all the codes and conventions of a magazine, but adjusted to the house style that will suit the correct target audience. For example, the left third of the magazine cover contains more of what will be inside the magazine and the house style of the magazine has connotations to the niche market. It is evident who the magazine is aimed at and the type of readers that are addressed as the magazine is informal as the type of language used is very relaxed, for example, “been through hell” and therefore suits a more carefree, gig-going, rock audience.This magazine is distributed by the Bauer Media Group, who also own “Q” Magazine, and would usually be distributed to everyday, average shops.

Contents page analysis:

The colours of the contents page (where there isn’t white space and black text) more vibrant colours are used. The main colour comes from the band photoshoots and the important text on the contents page, giving the impression that the magazine is all about the music as the bands take up the majority of the page. The red and yellow colours of the important text highlight the important information and stand out from the page well, drawing your attention to it. The mood of the contents page corresponds to that of the cover page as again, it is “in-your-face”, bold and straight to the point. You get the impression that the magazine is serious about delivering the music news.The images are anchored by the text well, for example the contents states that on page 48 there is a live review of Pierce The Veil, and above that is a photo from the Pierce The Veil show. This is just one example of the text anchoring the images. Also all of the images depict bands of the same music genre (alternative rock and metal) to maintain the attention of the rock-orientated target

audience. The fonts for the main headings and story titles are in all-caps and are bold specifically to maintain the bold house style. The body text is serif, it is smaller and isn’t in all-caps as it’s the detail for the magazine articles. This suggests that the articles contain important information, but due to the language used – for example “never let Ville Valo make you a sexy mix tape. Unless you like black metal” – it implies that the stories will also have an element of humour to them as well as information on music.The language used on the cover is maintained in the contents page as it remains informal and humorous, again to appeal to the carefree audience and keep the attention of the target audience. The images in the contents page represent the interests of the target audience, as they not only take an interest in band affairs, but concerts too. Metal bands are featured on the contents page and represent the genre of the magazine and the features contained within it. Each band member is in some sort of typically powerful or “cool” pose to look important and almost “god-like” as many of the photos are taken from a low angle to make the band seem higher and dominant. This gives the impression to the reader that they are music “royalty”. The style is generally dark, with the focus primarily on the band members to make them stand out more, and the hair styles and clothing are typical for an alternative style and therefore attracts the alternative audience as they depict an ideal for the reader to look like. The contents lines are obvious and frank, they are straight to the point and relate to what is inside the magazine, for example the contents line “GREEN DAY AND ALL TIME LOW” relates to the story of Green Day and All Time Low performing together at the Emirates Stadium, and the description further implies that with “It’s only a bloody pop-punk explosion. KABLOODYBOOM.” In bigger and coloured letters are the types of contents arranged in order, for example pages under the headings of “Feedback”, “News”, “Features” etc. This breaks apart the text and makes it much easier to read. The main feature titles are readable from a

distance and catch the reader’s eye, particularly if they include something that interests the reader.The layout of the page is well done, as there is enough space between columns for it to be noticeable, but they aren’t so far apart that it takes up too much space. There is an even distribution of text and photos, as well as headings and titles, all of which follow the alternative rock house style of the magazine very well.

Double-page spread analysis:

The double-page spread in Kerrang! follows to alternative house style, and also creates a theme to go along with the idea of the band members being like “musical Gods”, as the style is Greek and God-like, making the bands seem important above others. The colours are contrasting to make the images of the band stand out against the text, again to make the bands look like the most important thing about the magazine. It contains a godly tone and gives the impression that the show that is being feature is not to be missed. Red is also used primarily as it is most associated with alternative rock as it is a loud and rock-related colour.The design of the double page spread is chosen to support the Greek God theme as the heading font that reads the band’s name is styled in a Greek fashion and makes the band seem very important. The images anchor the text as they how the bands that are being featured in the article and show lives performances of them as a preview of what is to come in the up and coming show. The double page spread uses a central image that anchors the heading of “All Time Low” as it depicts the front man of the band. Also there is a small image on double-page spread that directly relates to the main story as it shows the band performing live, which is what the entire feature is about. The images also portray what the reader aspires to; going to concerts and seeing live bands perform the show of the century. The images again represent the alternative rock scene, and maintain the house style. The style of the images are rugged, their hair is typically pop punk and shows the ideal of an alternative rock band and show. This all gives the impression that the show being featured is the ideal pop punk show and “the place to be”. Particular words to suit the house style are used and featured highly, for example in the pull quotes the word “rebel” is used to appeal to the target audience as it will draw their attention due to how the word implies moving away

from the mainstream trends. Also supporting the Greek God theme is the word in the second pull quote “idol” which implies that the bands performing are superior to other bands. The stand first contains the quote “a dream come true”, which further supports the impression that the show cannot be missed as it is one of a kind. The headings are large enough to read from a distance and therefore anyone walking past with an interest in any of the bands would notice and be interested. As an unusual design, this double-page spread will stand out over others on the shelf. The language in the double-page spread remains to the house style by keeping up the informal words, for example “I don’t want to mess up”. This language is used to keep the reader interested in the story and to make it more humorous and more enjoyable to read. As music is quite uplifting and isn’t a serious topic for Kerrang! magazine, informal language is used to portray this well.Overall the double-page spread greatly implies that the feature is massively important and that the show being written about is an once-in-a-lifetime experience as it brings together two “God’s” (as it is implied) of rock. This successfully persuades the alternative rock audience to at least consider going to the show. The double-page spread successfully anchors the impression that the cover and contents page gives. The entire double-page spread explains and goes into detail regarding the story that the cover page is revolved around, and therefore the magazine successfully implies, supports and describes a feature and influences the correct readership to pick up the magazine and find out what it contains.