Deconstructions of Rock Magazines front covers, contents page and double page spreads

Done by Eman Shah

The masthead of this magazine front cover is large and is placed at the top of the page. The name of the magazine is ‘Rock Sound’, which indicates that it is a rock magazine. The dominant image is covering partly the magazine which suggests that it has a particular fan base which means that they can recognise it.

The font on the front cove is bold which makes the masthead stand out. The font relates to the genre of the magazine because as it could represent the boldness of the music.

The main headline is large and is positioned on the left hand side of the cover. The headline says ‘We are the in crowd’. This will draw the audience in and also encourage them into reading the main article. The word ‘incredible’ persuades the audience to read the article and catch their interest. The black and red colour of the text links in with the dominant image as the woman is dresses in black.

The woman in the main image is called Tay Jardine a member of We are in the crowd’. Tay is looking directly at the focal point of the camera. Her facial expression is inviting as she has a smile on her face which makes her look friendly. A medium close up has been used so the subject body language is easy to read. The shot also allows the clothing to be visible. This is

important as her clothing relates to the genre of her music. She is wearing dark clothing consisting of a leather jacket which is the stereotypical style of a person in a rock band. She is presented as feminine through her hair and makeup, but however her pose could be seen as masculine which could suggest that she is a tom boy.

A red, black, white and grey colour scheme has been used. The red and black colour scheme has been used which stands out on the white background. Red is an eye catching colour and therefore is effective in attracting the audience. These colours also link in with the genre of the magazine which is rock

The masthead is the rock sound logo. It is small and is place on the left hand side of the page. It is red and links in with the repeated colour scheme of the magazine. It also stands out over of the dark picture. The important information is embedded into the logo and includes the issue number of the magazine and its release date. This is small as it will most likely not interest the audience but however on the other hand it is necessary to include this.

The text used is to give information to the reader about the articles inside and also give the reader an insight into what the articles are about. In the top right hand side of the page it says ‘we have those dark secrets too’. I think this is done to act as a teaser. The quote is over a picture of Alex Gaskarth. This quote will build interest in the reader to make them curious knowing what those ‘secrets are’. The form of the address in the editors letter is direct as language such as ‘your and ‘you’ is used. This will make the audience feel involved and interesting in reading the magazine.

The font is simple and easy to read. It is black so it stands out over the white background. The subheadings have a large, bold font so that the text stands out.

The images are crowded together to create a cluttered look which links into the genre of the music, as rock music sound very ‘cluttered’.

Several images have been included on the contents page. Most of the images are of the band members. Page numbers have been placed over the images to allow the audience to know what article is on which page.

Language- ‘They feel so alive again’, are Sleeping With Sirens lyrics therefore the headline ‘They feel so alive again’ is a play on words linking to the bands lyrics. Fans of the band will recognise this when reading the article. The text is quite small on the page this is done so lots of information is able to fit on the page. The font looks easy to read. Black and red colours for the text so it is easily readable over the white background. The language is formal which suggest that the music is serious

Columns are used to organise the text in an easy readable format. The dominant image acts as a background to the page making the article more appealing for the readers. A quotation has been picked out from the text to present larger. This is done to make the article look and sound more interesting for the audience to read. The main image shows the lead singer of the band

singing in a studio. The photo links with the article as it is based on the band recording album. The two smaller images show band members working in the studio which also links in with the context of the article.

We can see that there is a large and bold “Q” in a white colour. This is the most importance on the cover. This is the masthead. We can tell that this is the masthead because they have made it very big so the audience will notice it very quickly and easily. Also red and white are contrasted so it is eye catching, sharp and can attract peoples attention.

The main image gives out the feeling of danger and passion, because we can see her ring is very sharp and she still puts her tongue on it which means she likes adventure and tasting dangerous. On top of that, she is in the rain, so she is wet. But she doesn’t care, is like she just does what she wants. The style of the image totally reflects the mood of the magazine. We know their topic is ROCK, the model’s make-up, action and colour matches with the tone.

On the magazine cover, they only used white, red, black. These three main colour join together which are match with the feeling of rock music. Overall, the visual style is quite dark, hard and dirty, because of the background, her make-up and costume are inclined to dark tone which is the match with rock’s element.

The main text on the cover is large and is ‘ROCKS’. It shows to audience that this magazine is focus on rock. It links with the main image, because it is in red and the tones are the same. It is the first selling point, so this can attract people who like rock music to buy this magazine.

The name of the magazine is NME which we can also se is on the contents page. NME is in red with a white outline. This contrasts with the black banner across the top which makes it stand out.

The main image is a mid shot of a member of the band The Big Pink who is pointing at a tour bus which relates to the article below about them starting more gigs in the UK. The image is quite inviting and friendly as the woman is looking at the camera with a happy expression which makes the reader feel welcome.

The date is an important feature as it identifies how current the magazine is and when it was published for example it would mean that regular buyers can see on whether they have missed out on buying the previous issue.

The column on the left side of the page is a list of bands and page numbers which will shows the reader who is featured in the magazine. It also shows that there is a wide range of bands which will be appealing for the target audience. The bands are in the colour red which makes them stand out on the white background and it differs from the page numbers as they are in black and are slightly less important.

The black banner at the top is like a background for the masthead which contrasts with the bold red and white masthead and this makes it stand out and clearly signifies to the reader what the page is about.

This is the double page spread of the Kerrang magazine. Within Kerrang the majority of the band members that are presented seem to be male suggesting a ‘male superiority’ view of the writers opinion, particularly within this double page spread, where the main picture is a low angle shot of the male, lead singer giving him dominance.

Each of the pictures have been manipulated, to create a black and white effect, which matches the dark emotional rock style. This complemented by the bright red colour of certain texts on the double page which also relates to the band style, with connotations of anger, blood and excitement.

The font use for the title is very clear, using a ‘worn out’ effect again relating to the rock/punk style of the band. The title has then been set out at an angle, and ‘best mcr’ has been highlighted by using a larger font than the rest of the words in the title. This gives the page a subtle hint of informality giving it a more entertaining feel as the mode of address.

The article is in two columns and is very small compared to the rest of the text. On the far right it has another article related to the band.

Kerrang is also emphasised that the band has ‘invited’ the magazine especially to their recording studios that the readers can get an insight into the life of a famous band and their lifestyle.