Double page spread analysisJesse McNamara

NME Double page spread

Kerrang Double page spread

• A sans serif font is used in the title with the addition of making it bold in order for it to stand out from the rest of the magazine. It is the same type of font and style as other articles in NME showing consistency within the magazine. The fact that it is made to stand out shows that the article is about them and connotates that it is a big and important band. The purpose of a headline is to outline what the article is going to be about, as used here as it is showing that the article is going to be about the band.

Headline / title

• In the Kerrang article a sans serif font is used again in the title. Unlike the NME magazine which uses a plain font with a colour that stands out from the background (following the rule of less is more) to draw attention, Kerrang used red and white writing to draw attention to the title with the addition of it being bigger than the rest of the writing. “The Best MCR” is the biggest writing of the title A sans serif font is used in the title with a white font which stands out more than the red which immediately draws our eyes to it. Also like NME it uses the same type of font and style as the other articles which is comforting to the reader as it shows consistency and makes the magazine easier to follow. The use of an abbreviation (“MCR”) connotates that it is a well known band as the audience wouldn’t understand the abbreviation if they weren’t. The title is important as it highlights what the article is going to be about, as shown here the article is about how MCR are improving themselves.

Headline / title

• The purpose of a stand first/slug/subheading is to draw you in to read the article. The stand first in this article has used the same font as the rest of the article but in a bigger size in order to make it stand out to the reader, it is also placed at the top of the article above the beginning of it in order to, again, bring attention as the attention will be brought to the beginning of the article. The words used in the stand first are important as one that was plain and boring wouldn’t make someone want to read the article. For example, strong words are used like “hate” and “shot” to make it more enticing. They also use phrases like “nothing will stop” to bring attention to the reader as it connotates that the band are going further and further in their success.

Stand first

• The purpose of a stand first/slug/subheading is to draw you in to read the article. Where the stand first in the NME article has used the same font as the rest of the article but in a bigger size in order to make it stand out to the reader and also placed it above the article away from the title, Kerrang have chose it to also be placed above the article but below the title, this brings attention as we are drawn to the medium between the two and the use of the bold writing of “my chemical romance” draws attention also. bring attention as the attention will be brought to the beginning of the article. The words used in the stand first are important as one that was plain and boring wouldn’t make someone want to read the article. For example, in NME they used words such as “shot” whereas in Kerrang words like “invite” and “their” are used which makes it sound like a privilege for Kerrang to be there. Also the way that the stand first is written makes MCR sound like they are totally focused in to their music and shows that the article will focus on this.

Stand first

• A drop cap is where the beginning letter of a sentence is made bigger than the rest of the words. Here, the drop cap is used exactly like that with a highlighted background in order to make the article look more significant on the page. The way that the drop capital is highlighted brings our eye towards it, enticing us to read the article.

Drop capital or other attention grabbing introduction to the article

• A drop cap is where the beginning letter of a sentence is made bigger than the rest of the words. Like NME, the drop cap in Kerrang is used exactly like that although whereas NME use a highlighted background in order to make the article look more significant on the page, Kerrang uses just a red bold M which shows consistency with the house theme and isn’t too distracting from the article while still drawing attention.

Drop capital or other attention grabbing introduction to the article

Columns and grid system

Columns and grid system

• The reason behind columns and grid systems is to make the page easier to read and more organised rather than having it all laid out without any order. They are encouraged to read the article as it looks easy to read and each text used in the article is left aligned which shows a house system which is used continually in the article. It’s easy to follow the article as only one pull quote is used which doesn’t distract too much attention from the article yet it adds attention to the article in general.

Columns and grid systems

• The reason behind columns and grid systems is to make the page easier to read and more organised rather than having it all laid out without any order. Like the NME article the text is left aligned which is comforting to the eye. The article is in two columns and is smaller in comparison to the rest of the text. The third column on the right hand page is music the band have done which is more information about the band so the reader can find out more about them.

Columns and grid systems

• Pull quotes show a quote used in the article but with the font size bigger to make it stand out. It’s a typical convention used in magazines, if the reader reads the pull quote first and the quote interests them they are more likely to read the article so the text used has to be picked cautiously so that it looks interesting, for example words like “shot” are used to gain attention, with the following “it’s no big thing for me” which makes the reader think ‘why is it no big thing’ and will make them want to read it. The pull quote in this magazine has been strategically placed in order to break up the article and make it easier for the audience to read.

Pull quotes/text grabs

• Pull quotes show a quote used in the article but with the font size bigger to make it stand out. It’s a typical convention used in magazines, although unlike NME, Kerrang have used a more clever way of introducing the pull quote as the quote is both a pull quote and the title. If the reader reads the pull quote/title then they will gain more information about the article and will come to a decision of whether or not they read it so the text used has to be picked cautiously so that it looks interesting, for example words like “best” are used to gain attention, and different words are of different sizes which draws your eye to it. The pull quote in this magazine has been strategically placed in order to not make the article look too full.

Pull quotes/text grabs

• A caption has been used in NME to give credit to the photographer and explain who was in the image which adds anchorage as it gives meaning to the image. They are important so that the audience know that the images are relevant to the magazine.

Captions

Captions

• Whereas NME uses one photo and one caption, Kerrang uses four photos with four captions. The captions add anchorage to the images as they show what they mean and who is in the image. They are important so that the audience know that the images are relevant to the magazine.

• NME uses one image in their article in order to draw attention. The image is in full colour and the image in articles usually display the band and who is in the band or who will feature in the interview as done here. Music magazines usually make the main image take up a whole page which is what has been done here. The setting for the image is in what seems to be a family home which connotates that the band are calm and casual about being famous and still remain level headed. The image is quite unusual as they have people who are not part of the band with things tied around their eyes which suggests that the band are a bit quirky (considering the setting also) unlike other bands who pose in an actual setting. The lighting of the band is made to make the immediate eye focus on the band sitting around the table.

Main image/primary image/secondary image

• Unlike NME, Kerrang have chose to include multiple images that are black and white in order to make the main focus on the title and text. Each of the photos has been manipulated for it to be this way in order to create a certain style of imagery, for example the images edited in this article are almost gothic and emo which is the type of music that My Chemical Romance produce. The size of the band is evident considering the pictures they have chosen which connotates their success. The separate images increases the fandom of the band as it makes the reader feel like they are included more in the article rather than just having one image of the band.

Main image/primary image/secondary image

• The structure of NME is straightforward and the parts in the magazine are placed specifically in order to make the magazine flow for your eyes, for example the magazine makes your eyes go from left to right to left. The information is revealed straight away as NME seem to jump into the article.

StructureNME

• Unlike NME, Kerrang’s structure is less straightforward and more complicated as it uses multiple images and different parts to the article which has the same eye catching effects as NME but makes it look a lot complicated. Whereas NME makes you go from left to right to left, Kerrang makes your eyes go all over as there isn’t a certain part of the magazine to focus on and different things included in the magazine distract you when you are focused on something.

StructureKerrang

• NME’s mode of address in the article is indirect which keeps up the interview. A direct mode of address in an interview would most likely cause confusion to the reader. Words such as “rippers” are used in the article which is slang and words like “indie” are reader specific as an older person would most likely not understand what this means. The article is wrote in first person which makes it more personal to the reader.

Mode of addressNME

• Like NME the article is written in first person which again increases the fandom of the band as the readers feel more connected with the article. The mode of address is indirect in order to not make confusion with the writing, as the reader may not understand whether the band or the writer is talking. Unlike NME, Kerrang doesn’t use words that are slang. Words that are reader specific are used, for example My Chemical Romance is shortened down to MCR which assumes that the reader is already aware of what the band are called and who they are and will know what MCR stands for.

Mode of addressKerrang

• NME follows the house style of left aligned text and a colour scheme of black, pink, purple and blue. It is maintained through the article as everything (such as the title, text, logo) is left aligned, the drop cap’s background is purple, “new noise” is purple, pink and black and the square in the bottom right hand corner includes all the house colours. The house style is also continued onto the actual image where writing on a shirt is blue.

House StyleNME

• Kerrangs house style is black, white and red. The text is left aligned in the actual article but the title/pull quote is center aligned. Kerrang have followed the house style colours really well and even the images included are black and white to make the article seem more consistent. The title includes two colours (red and white) and the background is black in order to pull it all together.

House styleKerrang

• The identity that the magazine are creating for the Chapman family is a small-town band that are easy going as the band member didn’t seem to bothered about being shot. The magazine creates an identity for the band as if they are unstoppable, by using words such as “nothing will stop” and acting as if they should have already stopped because they have been shot.

Constructing an ideology: messages about attitudes and valuesNME

• The identity that the magazine are creating for the Chapman family is a small-town band that are easy going as the band member didn’t seem to bothered about being shot. The magazine creates an identity for the band as if they are unstoppable, by using words such as “nothing will stop” and acting as if they should have already stopped because they have been shot.

Constructing an ideology: messages about attitudes and valuesKerrang

• The identity that Kerrang are creating for My Chemical Romance is an old band that are doing well for themselves and are continuing to improve. It is representing social groups such as goths and emos by the gothic editing of the pictures and the black and red constant house theme.

Constructing an ideology: messages about attitudes and valuesKerrang