2. Colour scheme: the dominant colour scheme is made
up of black. red and white with yellow accents. These
have been chosen so that they appeal to the target
audience of the magazine, with black being a dark
colour to signify „rock‟ compared to a pop magazine
that would usually be made up of bright colours to
draw that specific audience.
Photography: A mid shot of Gerard Way has been
used to clearly show which pose he is in, with has
hands shaped into guns which is a convention that
would be associated and related to the genre of the
magazine, once again signifying to the audience that
Kerrang is a rock magazine. The image is also an eye-
level shot which makes the viewer and the subject
seem equal to one another. This makes the audience
feel as though they can identify with the person in the
photo, which would often be someone they idolize, on
a personal level . Also, because the image is so large
and spread across the front cover the audience
automatically identify that this band will be the main
article, and because they are well known in the rock
genre they will draw the audience in to the magazine.
High key lighting gives contrast between the darker
colour scheme and the photograph so that the photo
stands out, but it is also very coordinated with the
colour scheme. In terms of mise en scene the subject
of the photo is wearing a lot of leather and studs
which is often associated with bikers and connotes
rebellion which is a convention of the rock genre.
3. Writing Style: The style of the writing on the front the cover is
very brief and aggressive which suggests the magazine
doesn‟t have a young target audience, with a tagline saying
“London riot!” which wouldn‟t be something that children would
understand and it also wouldn‟t be appropriate for them.
Overall Look: The magazine cover as whole has a alternative
feel with the coordinated colour scheme giving it a very
organised effect, however the messy, disordered composition
of the headline, taglines etc make the entire cover look thrown
together which often appeals to the target audience of the
magazine. The colours are used to make sure its identifiable
next to pop magazines.
Text/Picture Ratio: The main picture fills most of the front
cover which draws the viewers attention to the magazine,
however the text is quite large (especially for the headline) and
so in some ways the text seems to be dominant on the page
to inform the audience of what‟s inside the magazine.
Publisher: Kerrang is published by Bauer Consumer Media ,
which targets a very wide range of audiences and Kerrang is
their only magazine that is dedicated to rock music, so they
have filled their niche in the market by creating this magazine.
Fonts: The masthead (“Kerrang”) is written in a
cracked/scratched font which appeals to the audience as it
has imperfections and isn‟t too neat, and makes it look more
real and distressed which is something associated with the
rock genre (that the music isn‟t as auto tuned as pop, etc).
The fonts are also more violent, aggressive and intense than
ordinary fonts and most of the writing on the page is bolded to
highlight how in-your-face the cover is. The font creates a
house style that is easily recognised by the target audience,
so even though Kerrang is covered by the image it is still
distinguishable.
4. Colour Scheme: The background of the contents page is filled
with grey making it look grimy and dirty, and the page has black
and yellow accents that stand out and let the audience know
which parts to look at first and they draw the eye. The colours
also link to the front cover and have a house style throughout
the magazine. Red is used again to connote blood and anger,
something that is thought to be related to rock music and the
people who listen to it. They are often considered angry,
passionate people who listen to this genre as a way of an
escape from real life.
Photography: The images labelled 16 and 60 are photographs
that have been used from live events/gigs that are popular with
the rock genre to make the audience feel connected to the
singer or band by giving the impression that they have attended
and are going to read about a unique experience. The other
images used on the page are posed, studio shots which
highlight the bands‟ status, and most images feature dull
colours. Images 14 and 41 have used a low angle shot to make
the subjects appear powerful and dominant to the audience.
This is something that is often related to the genre by the
audience who like rock music because they find rock bands
influential and important.
The image of You Me At Six (which is coincidentally the largest
image on the page – indicating they will have the biggest
spread in the magazine) features an intertextual reference to
Shaun of the Dead, imitating the zombie apocalypse and also
linking into the genre and target audience of the magazine once
again because zombies, death and blood are all associated
with rock/alternative and „dark‟ music.
Writing Style: The writing style seems very colloquial and
unsuitable for a target audience of young people/children, with
articles, topics and quotes that are more suited to an adult or
teenage audience e.g. “Please God, let me find a slutty chick
tonight”. Quotes like this also suggest that the main audience of
Kerrang would be male because stereotypically men would be
more likely to say things such as this and also to use colloquial
language and language that is usually considered unsuitable.
5. Overall Look: As a whole the contents page of
Kerrang works well together with the colour
scheme to make it look dirty/rough and the fact
that the actual contents on the page is headed
with clear headings to inform readers where
each topic would be in the magazine (“News”,
“Album Reviews”, etc.) makes it easy to read
and navigate, with a large font and not too
much text that it would bore the audience. The
images are also appealing with the variety of
studio and live shots used to highlight how
important live events are to the rock genre.
Text/Picture Ratio: The page has an
overwhelming amount of images compared to
text. This appeals to the audience because
they wouldn‟t want to read huge amounts of
text on a page – they simply want to be
directed to the page with the band they want to
read about.
Fonts: The fonts on the contents page are very
easy to read so that the audience can navigate
straight to the page they want without having to
read a more complicated font (like on the front
cover). The parts that the magazine find
important, such as band names and headings,
are highlighted in bold to show their
significance.
6. Colour Scheme: The
overwhelming colour
scheme of the double page
spread is black/sepia tone.
This immediately gives it a
dark, mysterious feel, and
black connotes authority
and power (also linking to
the title “We‟re being the
best MCR we can be!”) but
can also represent
malevolence, something
that links back to the genre
of the magazine and what
would be appealing to the
target audience. White and
red accents link back to the
house style of the cover,
and they are used to make
the text stand out against
the background. Red
connotes anger, intensity,
passion and danger, relating
Photography: Each of the photos that are placed on the page are un-posed and live action shots
of either the band performing or working on their new studio album. This is a style that is
to the target audience but
associated with rock bands to make them appear flawed so that people can aspire to be them also contradicting the fact
because people don‟t want to have an idol who is perfect, they want someone who they can that the bands next album is
identify with. The images are placed haphazardly on the page and overlap each other as though about “strength” and “self-
they have been placed carelessly. Also, the photography itself is substandard, with lens flare preservation” . This proves
obstructing one members face and the background being blurred out. This once again appeals to that the stereotypes and
the target audience. Two images are mid-shots, to show the emotion on the band members face labels of the rock music
and the largest image is high key lighting because of harsh stage lighting. All images are in sepia
genre are not always
tone giving a mysterious feel and they are very high contrast images to make the lighter colours
stand out against the dark background.
correct.
7. Text/Picture Ratio: Once
again there are more
images that dominate the
page than text, but
somehow they don‟t seem
overpowering and instead
make the page appear
balanced. The use of a lot
of images appeals to the
audience because many
people would want look at
the band rather than read
about them, and also for
the purposes that people
sometimes cut images out
of magazines if they like
them.
Fonts: The title links the
front cover of the
magazine to the article
Writing Style: The writing style is interview-like, with the writer of the article asking the because of the similar
lead singer questions and Gerard answering in full sentences that seem quite formal. font style, with the grimy,
However, the language used is still colloquial in places such as “Oh, it‟s filthy!”. Also, the cracked effect. This
text is quite informative with the main aim seeming to be bringing the audience and fans makes the audience feel
up to date on the bands progress. more connected and also
makes it seem more
Overall Look: Overall the page looks very mysterious, but the white and red heading
personal to have the style
makes the article stand out and look visually pleasing to the audience. The images take
precedence over the text to start with but the text would also be appealing to the
carried throughout the
audience because there isn‟t too much that it would be overwhelming. magazine.
8. Colour Scheme: The main colours featured are red, black and white
with yellow accents (once again). These are a convention of the
rock/alternative genre and are used to appeal to the target audience
of the magazine because they aren‟t specifically bright colours which
would be unsuitable for the audience. The colours used on the front
create a house style for the magazine so that the audience know that
these colours will be used throughout. Black is used to convey
mystery and death. This is fitting as the tagline used says “I can‟t
keep on living like this, it‟s doing my head in”. Death is often
stereotypically associated with the rock genre as people feel
audiences who enjoy rock music are those who need to look up to
someone or because they have no one else.
Photography: The main image is a posed photograph that links in
with the colour scheme of the magazine. It is a eye-level, medium
close up shot which makes the audience identify with the subject of
the photo on a personal level that they wouldn‟t be able to do if the
angle was different. Lily Allen is doing quite a seductive pose which
doesn‟t look particularly natural and therefore contributes to the genre
of the magazine as the target audience look for a more alternative
look when they shop. High key lighting on the image makes the
subject stand out against the background and makes her hair
coordinate with the colour scheme, and the lighting connotes
happiness and positivity which contrasts with the colour scheme that
has a dark theme (once again linking to the genre and target
audience of the magazine). Because she is the main focus on the
front cover, with her filling the majority of the page, the audience know
that she will be the main article inside the magazine.
Writing Style: The writing style is colloquial and mostly informal and
unserious, apart from “I can‟t keep on living like this, it‟s doing my
head in” which has more serious connotations. “Lily Allen Takes on
the World” however is playful and amusing to the audience because
the statement is a hyperbole. This means that that the text is an over
exaggeration to draw the audience in. The word “Plus” at the bottom
draws the audiences‟ attention to the other bands featured in the
magazine and makes them feel as though they are getting a lot for
their money. The text is very to the point and aggressive and there
are no long sentences on the cover and instead short, snappy words
that make the viewer want to buy the magazine to find out more.
9. Overall Look: The cover overall looks very alternative to
the audience. Even with a female solo artist as the main
article, the audience would still be able to identify that this
was a rock/alternative magazine (because empowering
women are often shown on the covers of pop magazines
for a teenage audience to identify with). The house style
clearly links into the genre with darker colours and a
definite colour scheme, and the title of the magazine
doesn‟t need to be entirely visible for the audience to
recognise because they are appealing to a niche market
who would be able to identify the magazine nonetheless.
Text/Picture Ratio: The main image takes up most of the
cover meaning that this is the article that the magazine
wants the audience to pay the most attention to. Text is
used sparingly except when to draw the audience in (“New
Monkeys Tunes”). This is appealing the TA because text is
unnecessary to an audience who would already read
NME.
Fonts: The fonts used on the cover are mostly in block
capitals, giving the effect that the words are shouted at the
viewer and make them stand out. The main title has the
appearance of newspaper clippings which create an
individual feel and make the audience understand two of
the main conventions of the rock genre; rebellion and
aggression, through using this style of text to break the
boundaries of perfection that other magazine genres strive
to achieve.
Publisher: IPC Media publish NME. They also publish
magazines such as TV and Satellite Week and Marie
Claire. They publish no other rock genre magazine and so
are filling their niche in the market.
10. Colour Scheme: The colour scheme continues from the
front cover with prominent colours such as black, red and
yellow, this time with a grey background much like
Kerrang‟s contents page. This creates a duller effect than
a plain white background would and is more appealing to
the target audience than garish colours. Having the white
and red text on top of a black block of colour creates an
effect that jumps off the page and immediately draws the
viewers eye to “NME this week”. Red is used to highlight
important parts on the page, such as the list of band
names included in the issue and the page numbers of
the articles. The colour itself also connotes passion
which could be linked to the list of names as the
audience would usually only buy the magazine if it
included bands they liked or where passionate about.
Black lines for the headings give a mysterious edge to
the magazine and make the reader want to continue on
to read the article.
Photography: At first it appears as though there is only
one prominent image on the page, that of a live event in
which the article below talks about, featuring the subjects
displayed in the image who attended a gig called Africa
Exprez. However on closer inspection the image is split
into two by the white line running through the middle, and
is actually two separate images taken from opposite
ends of the stage. This is effective as it makes the image
more visually appealing to the viewer. The images are
long shots showing all of the subject to make the
audience feel connected as if they were actually there,
as this is how they would see the scene in real life. Harsh
concert lighting makes the images high key and they are
quite grainy, making them interesting to the audience
and linking to the genre. The images are also fairly low
contrast as the subjects‟ clothing are often barely
distinguishable from the background. This makes the
images seem more real and engaging.
11. Writing Style: Apart from the short article in the
middle of the page, the rest of the text on the contents
page is short and perfunctory, only highlighting certain
aspects of what will be contained within so that the
audience will want to look for themselves. The
language is once again fairly colloquial to appeal to
the audience but still maintains a correct feel and
doesn‟t seem out of place. Adverts such as “subscribe
today for just £5.57” are used to draw the audience in
with excitement at getting the magazine at a reduced
price and creates anticipation.
Overall Look: Overall this contents page is very
similar to that of Kerrang in some aspects such as
colour scheme, and that the magazine is very clearly
targeted at people who enjoy rock/alternative music
and would usually be aimed at adult males due to the
dull colours and style of images.
Text/Picture Ratio: On this particular contents page
the dominant feature is text. There is only one
pronounced image in the contents and this is what
draws the readers eye first because it is the only
source of visual graphics on the page. However, even
though there is a lot of text it isn‟t overwhelming
because most are short statements or even just
words that are arranged so that they say a lot by
saying so little.
Fonts: The fonts on this page are readable and
ordinary, helping the flow of the page which has a lot
of text. However, important parts have been bolded to
draw the viewers eye such as the title and the “band
index”
12. Overall Look: The
double page spread
itself looks very
modern and
contemporary and
slightly breaks the
boundaries of
colours and styles
that are usually
featured in
rock/alternative
magazines. It has a
very fresh feel and
appeals to teenagers
, especially through
the band‟s name,
which is placed in
the middle of the
double page to make
the reader‟s eye
drawn to it.
Colour Scheme: The colour scheme of this double page is very unlike the rest of the magazine‟s house style. The main colours
used here are white, blue and black. These are still dark colours, however the blue is very prominent and is a cool, cold colour that
connotes calmness and power and also makes the subjects of the image appear strong. However, when blue is used a lot it can
make the viewer feel sad and melancholy. The black block of colour links into the contents page and makes the text stand out, and
also alerts the audience that the box contains information that isn‟t linked to the main article. The white gives the page a fresh look,
which relates to the article and because the band is new, indicated by the tagline “The best new music”. There is only one part of
the entire double page spread that is red, and that is where NME.com is displayed, thus promoting themselves through a different
coloured box that stands out amongst the rest.
Writing Style: The article is quite informal and full of quotes and answers that wouldn‟t be suitable for a target audience of young
children. Therefore the target audience is more likely to be teenagers and young adults. The quote “Of course we‟re a sexual band.
We‟re The Teenagers and that‟s all they think about” is another indication of the target audience, and also the genre because passion
and rebellion are conventions of this genre.
13. Text/Picture Ratio:
There appears to be
many more images
on the page than
text, especially with
the image that takes
up one page. This is
used so the
audience can identify
the new band, and
minimal amount of
text often appeals to
the target audience.
Font: The fonts used
are clear and appear
to be quite typical
“typed” fonts, linking
to teenagers
because they are
often stereotyped
and associated with
being a generation
obsessed with
technology and
computer gadgets.
Photography: The main image takes up an entire page of the double page spread and is thought out clearly to link into
the band‟s name. The three people featured in the image are laid comfortably on a bed in what looks like a teenage boy‟s
bedroom. This mise-en-scene gives the audience a clear relation between the name and the people, and also helps the
audience make an assumption about the band and what their music would contain, because there are a lot of posters of
women on the walls. The clothing the band members are wearing are very dark to fit into the colour scheme and nothing in
the image is particularly bright. This shows that the music would most likely appeal to males rather than females because
of the content of the music. The image is a long shot, showing the subjects as well as the background (bedroom wall).
This gives the audience a clear look at the band for future reference so they would recognise them in a later edition of the
magazine. There is also a smaller inset image of a band member at a live event/gig, which is a convention of the rock
genre as concerts are a large part of the culture, and therefore this would appeal to the target audience of the magazine.
14. Colour Scheme: The main colours featured are black and white,
with yellow, red and blue accents to highlight certain parts of the
front cover. These specific colours are conventions of the rock
genre and fit well to entice the target audience of the magazine
(which would be teens/adults and mostly male). These colours
are the only colours used on the cover which suggests to the
audience that this is the house style and they will be used
throughout. This helps the viewer identify better with the inside of
the magazine because the colour scheme will be the same and
so creates a sense of consistency throughout. White is used to
stand out against the dark background so that it jumps out at the
audience and entices them in to the magazine. Yellow is often
used to emphasize the key aspects of the cover. By putting
words such as “exclusive”, “free” and “rocked!” in this colour
suggest that this is what draws the audience in the most plus it is
also used as a marketing technique by highlighting offers.
Photography: The image of Gerard Way (rock band My
Chemical Romance‟s lead singer) on the cover immediately
draws the attention of the target audience because the band is
very well known within the rock genre. This is a selling point for
the magazine. The image itself is a serious, eye-level shot which
gives a sense of intimacy and makes the viewer believe they are
equal with the subject, giving the magazine a more personal feel.
Gerard Way‟s red hair colour appears quite high contrast against
the dark background and it stands out and grabs the viewers
attention, suggesting this was intentional to show the rebellious
side of the rock genre and demonstrate that individuals have
their own distinctive style that breaks the boundaries of what
society says is „correct‟. The idea that Gerard Way‟s hair is falling
over into his face also links to this thought because he isn‟t
conveying the look of „perfection‟ that a lot of pop magazine
cover artists do, as it isn‟t necessary to draw the attention of the
target audience. The gold stain on the subject‟s shirt gives the
grubby, grimy look to the magazine cover, linking to what is
stereotypically related to the target audience of the magazine
and the genre.
15. Writing Style: The language style on the cover is used to
entice the audience into the buying the magazine by placing
short, snappy, attention-grabbing words such as “exclusive”,
which makes the viewer want to the buy the magazine to see
content that they wouldn‟t find anywhere else, and “rocked!”
which automatically links to the genre and reinforces the
audience‟s views on the magazine. The style of the text is very
straight to the point and has a list of band names on the front
which is used once again to attract the buyer.
Overall Look: Overall the effect the cover has on the audience
is instantaneous. The word “MCR” is in bold which immediately
draws the viewers eye rather than the masthead, therefore
suggesting that the brand is well known within the genre and the
cover star and main article are more the focus. The image is
striking and appeals to the target audience and the short words
on the page suggest aggression which also links to the genre.
Text/Picture Ratio: There is very little text on the front cover in
comparison to how much of the image is shown. This is a
convention of rock magazines because it draws in the specific
target audience as they are more drawn to images and the
names of their favourite bands. What text there is on the page is
useful and put there for a reason; to grab the readers attention.
Fonts: The fonts seem very ordinary, so that they are easily
readable to the audience, except for that they are bolded and
chunky, signifying the loud, abrasive nature of those who
stereotypically enjoy the rock genre.
Publisher: Rock Sound is published by Sonic Publishing, a
publisher that specialises in music and movies. However most
of the things they publish, such as Rocklouder and Clickmusic,
are online sites. Rock Sound is the only monthly music
magazine they publish which fills the niche in their market.
16. Colour Scheme: There are three main colours on the
contents page: red, white and black, which link into the
house style from the front cover of the magazine. These
colours are typical of the rock genre and are a convention
by the red connoting blood and anger and the black
connoting death and mystery. However, the colour white is
juxtaposed against these two other colours as traditionally
white signifies purity and innocence. This gives a sense of
irony and suggests that these colours were chosen to
contrast against each other just like people who listen to the
rock genre would contrast against others who listen to pop.
Also, the red and white contrast against one other so that
the two opposite sides of the page stand out, with the red
colour used on one side to highlight the images, because
lots of images opposed to text are a convention of rock
magazines.
Photography: There are six images on the contents page
of Rock Sound. The first image is the largest suggesting to
the audience that the main article will be about Green Day.
This is a draw to the audience because the band is well
known and popular within the genre. This image is a posed,
muddy-looking photograph which is fairly high contrast to
make the subjects stand out against the background. It is
also an eye-level shot which lets the viewer engage with the
picture and gives them a sense of intimacy and closeness
to the band. All the images featured on the page are of
more than one person, linking to the idea that bands are the
most popular within the rock genre and that it‟s rare that a
single artist will be featured in magazines such as this. Un-
posed, live-action shots such as “58” are also a convention
of the rock genre because they are more suited to the
target audience of the magazine as viewers are often
drawn to images from live events.
17. Writing Style: There isn‟t a lot of writing on the page
but in terms of the contents it‟s set out in a systematic
way, with subheadings to direct the viewer immediately
to what they want to look at. Also, small snippets of
information inform the reader of what‟s to come, with
the band on page 122 having a tagline of gig guide:
Bleeding Through. This is used as a technique to draw
them in to the article so the page doesn‟t look boring
but so it still continues to be snappy and direct .
Overall Look: Overall the contents page of Rock
Sound is similar in ways to that of Kerrang and NME in
terms of colour scheme because all magazines have
been assigned a house style that fits with the genre and
target audience. The stars on the bottom link in with the
magazine itself because many famous rock bands
originated from America (and America is often
associated with stars) but also because the headline
band Green Day has a well-known single called
American Idiot which most people who are into the rock
genre would recognise. This is another way of inviting
the audience in and making them feel closer to the
band.
Fonts: The fonts on the page are quite grungy looking,
scratched, decayed and smashed up. These things are
a connotation and a convention of the rock genre and
what would suit the target audience. “Rock Sound” is
displayed at the top in what looks like faded and dirty
graffiti writing, something that is associated with
teenagers/young adults which is the target audience of
the magazine.
18. Photography: The main image
takes up an entire double page
spread, being used across both
pages. This is so that the entire
band can be highlighted and
shown to the audience for
further recognition. The six
people featured in the image
are all posed differently, all with
sombre looks on their faces that
let the audience make an
assumption about the band and
what their music would contain
(serious topics, hopeful lyrics
etc). There are only three
members actually looking into
the camera (eye-level) which
suggests these are the ones the
audience will identify with more.
The other three looking away
gives symmetry but also keeps
the element of mystery about
the band. The clothing the band
members are wearing are all
black to fit into the colour
scheme. The image itself is low
Colour Scheme: The colour scheme of the double page spread is mostly black with white writing contrast and muddy, once again
and a yellow logo placed next to the band‟s name. The black background gives the page a connoting sadness and
mysterious, eerie, ominous feel with the colour having connotations of death. The white juxtaposes depression, something
the overwhelming colour of black because of the seemingly mixed message the page is sending. stereotypically associated with
Looking at the quote at the bottom of the page, "I'm back to a place where I can enjoy this again” people who enjoy the rock
this suggests that the white is used to connote hope and moving on, because the band member genre. The image is also a long
has obviously had a trouble enjoying being in the same place in the past. The yellow logo catches shot, showing all of the
the eye as it‟s the only bright colour on the page and therefore draws the viewers eye. Yellow has members as well as a fitting
connotations of happiness and hope, which once again link to that people who enjoy the rock background (old and decayed
genre often listen to bands‟ music to get themselves out of a bad place or situation. building).
19. Writing Style: The writing
style on both pages is
colloquial, with profanities
being used in the interview
by the band members in the
first sentence and
throughout. This gives the
effect that the band is more
real and can be themselves
without having to be told
what to say unlike many pop
artists. The interview is also
fairly personal, discussing
Steve Hewitt‟s former band
and how the lead singer
became “more and more
controlling”. This is also a
pull to the audience because
fans often want to hear
about things that happen
behind the scenes.
Text/Picture Ratio: There
appears to be a larger
Font: The main font on the page is an old font that looks like Celtic ruins, linking image therefore it still
into the title of the band Love Amongst Ruin and making the audience feel more dominates the page even
connected to them and it also makes the page appear more personal. though there is only one.
However, the writing of the
interview is small and seems
Overall Look: The overall effect of the double page is that the audience
pretty detailed. This still fits
automatically recognise that the interview will be about the band‟s struggle into the convention that the
because of the dark colour scheme that is highlighted with white suggesting a rock genre often has more
happy ending. pictures than text.
