Analysis of rock magazine covers

 

I am going to analyse 3 magazine covers from the rock music genre, the covers I am going to analyse are from the existing magazines: Kerrang, Classic Rock, and NME. I am analysing these magazines to get a better understanding of what the common conventions on a rock magazine, in order to make a professional looking project myself.  In 1997, a theorist named Bentley said that “ the creative process is the rearranging of the old to create the new” this is relevant because I’m going to follow the common conventions of old magazines, so that my magazine is easily recognisable and liked by the target audience.

Kerrang is a UK based magazine, which is published by Bauer Media. The magazine is published once a week, and each issue cost £2.20.

The primary target audience for Kerrang magazine is for people aged 15-24, for males and females, pitched at C1-E However, I have done some research of the target audience of Kerrang and found a graph, which shows that although it is predominantly sold to people who fall in to their target audience, many people outside of the target audience also buy the magazine. 

The title of the magazine is Kerrang. The reason it is called Kerrang is because it is named after the onomatopoeic word for the sound made when playing the power chord on a distorted electric guitar. This is relevant because rock music originally developed around the electric guitar, so the target audience will be drawn to this name. In terms of the masthead, it follows common conventions, regarding size. The masthead is partially covered by the main image on the front cover. This is able to happen because the magazine is very well known so people will still recognise the title despite it being partially covered. However, this may prevent new customers from buying the magazine. When it comes to making my magazine, I will not cover my masthead so much, hopefully enabling new customers to buy my magazine, thus taking customers away from the Kerrang magazine. The style of the masthead is good because it is a very sharp font, it also has slashes, or lines through it. This relates to the rock genre, as it looks rough and untidy. This will appeal to the primary target audience of 15-24 because they will not be looking for something neat and tidy, especially when it’s representing a rock magazine. 

The layout of the magazine is very relevant to the target audience and the genre of the magazine. It is good because although the magazine cover looks messy and unorganised it is a great layout for a rock magazine because that’s the perception people have of rock stars, so although it doesn’t look tidy, the magazine is suitable for its genre and target audience. Although the target audience is directed at both genders, it leans more to the male side and this is evident when looking at the cover, the colours chosen and the layout of the writing and pictures leans more toward the male aspect. This is because they sell more to males, so targeting them should mean more profit. The colours pallet consists of bright colours that jump out at you. This again fits in with the image of rock music, and the way its loud and attention grabbing. Overall, the layout of this magazine cover is perfectly suited to the rock music genre and the target audience, as it mimics the common image of rock, which is messy, loud, and stands out. This will appeal to the target audience as they will look at the magazine and without reading much they can straight away see that it is a rock magazine.

The colour scheme doesn’t follow the common conventions as it has more than 3 main colours; this connotes a sense of rebellion, something that is often associated with the rock genre. For my magazine, I will take this into consideration, but I will also look to stick to the common conventions expected on a magazine.

The font is a very sharp font, this once more connotes rock music, and the genre as rock is seen to be rough around the edges and sharp, so having a font like this will help the buyer to easily distinguish what kind of magazine it is they are looking at. In terms of lexis the words used on the cover like "puke!" and "nudity!" are effective because they successful attract the target audience. The target audience will be attracted because nudity and puking are seen as things that aren't thought very highly, rebellious to a certain extent therefore connoting the rock genre and representing the target audience perfectly.

 

The new music express magazine or NME as its commonly known is published weekly by IPC media to make a profit. Each issue costs £2.20

The target audience for NME magazine is 16-19 year olds of both genders. The magazine is pitched at C1-E. The secondary audience would be any other fans of rock music.

The mast head follows the common conventions you would expect to see on a magazine front cover, as it is roughly 1/8 of the page. The name “NME” is an abbreviation due to how popular the magazine has become, as soon as NME is seen, it is easily recognised. This to a point suggests why the mast head is able to be covered, somewhat.

The colour scheme once more follows the common conventions, and has 3 main colours. White, red and black. The use of the colour red connotes danger, love and passion. This is relevant because these are all things that are associated with rock as a genre. The colours chosen are relevant because they all connote the rock genre. Red connotes danger and passion which are largely associated with rock music and artists. Black denotes mystery which is good on the front cover of a magazine as it draws the reader in, as well as this black is a colour that is often worn by people associated with the rock genre itself. 

On this front cover, it doesn’t necessarily follow the common conventions as it has only one main image, and no other images. On the other hand it is very effective, as it creates a dull backdrop for the bright and bold writing. The star models in the image are wearing dark clothing so in terms of the 

mise- end scene of this image it is spot on because dark clothing is common in rock music. The image has been lit so that the faces are highlighted and people in the target audience will be able to clearly recognise their favourite artists.

The layout of the magazine cover is fairly messy, but this is acceptable on this genre magazine, as it is in the rock genre, therefore messiness and scruffy presentation is to be expected. This is so because rock stars are often stereotypically seen as scruffy and unkempt. As far as the target audience are concerned a scruffy looking magazine may appeal to them more as it is often associated with teenagers, as well as the rock group, so seeing these things will help them to pick out their genre of magazine without having to look too hard. In terms of lexis this rock magazine doesn't particularly follow common conventions because it doesn't really have any words that connote rebellion which is something you usually see on the front cover of a rock magazine.

 

Classic Rock is a British magazine dedicated to the radio format of classic rock. The magazine published by TeamRock, who also publish the magazine Metal Hammer. Although firmly focusing on key bands from the 1960s through early 1990s, it also includes articles and reviews of contemporary and upcoming artists it deems worthy of note.

The magazine is published once monthly to make profit.

The target audience is 18+ directed at both male and females, but I would say predominantly males. The social band class it is pitched at would be C1-E as these are stereotypically people who would be into rock music, more so than higher class bands.

The mast head follows the common conventions you would expect to see on the front of a magazine, as it is approximately 1/8^th of the page. The way rock is highlighted is good because it is easily noticeable for new customers to walk into a shop and see the word rock and pick it up to have a look. 

This may mean they like the magazine and now are interested in buying it.

The layout like a lot of rock magazines is fairly unorganised as this is widely associated with the rock genre. And people looking for a rock magazine will be able to recognise their genre of magazine, as the layout is different from the other genres of magazine. When I create my magazine, I will look to do what most rock magazines tend to do and make the front cover look reasonably messy as this seem to be a common occurrence throughout rock magazines and will hopefully help mine sell.

The colour scheme on this magazine follows the 3 main colour conventions.
 The use of the colour black connotes darkness and unfriendly-ness; this is a good colour to use as once more these things are widely associated with rock music. Red connotes danger, but also passion this helps promote rock music, and people looking for these magazine, will often look for colours like these. Using colours like these will appeal to the target audience because they will recognise these colours and be attracted to the target audience.