Hannah Wood Music Magazine Analysis

The text at the top of the page is in a bold white font on a black background in order for the text to stand out. However the font is fairly small so that it doesn’t overpower the title and other eye-catching, important aspects of the cover. This text section is placed clearly separate from merging with the rest of the top of the magazine as it is not part of the main cover feature however is still important as it is introducing the rest of the contents of the magazine.

The title of the magazine is printed in white with a dark drop shadow outlining it to improve the sharpness of the text. This is because the overall page background is grey so that and plain white text may have looked too similar on top of each other. Due to the cover feature artists wearing all black clothing, the background is unable to be black as the colours would merge and the clarity of the artists would not be suitable. Overall, all coloured text/image featured must be on an appropriately coloured background in order for them to not become washed out or unclear.

There are three smaller pictures placed at the bottom of the page which are of other bands that are also featured in the magazine however not as heavily as Green Day. Because of this, these photos are printed smaller, at the bottom and not as close up images. This implies that the articles surrounding these artists are smaller than the main feature.

There are hints of red scattered across the page in order to keep the house style slightly more vibrant and colourful rather than just black and grey. Another colour that is featured is green due to the featured artist ‘Green Day’s’ title. I think that the use of the colour green ties the main photo and surrounding text together making the house style very appropriate to the featured band.

The title of the artist featured is the boldest piece of text on the page which stands out the most due to the fact it is the main contents of the magazine. Fans of this particular band will be drawn to the name and may choose to purchase the magazine. The text may be printed in green because of the band’s name being ‘Green Day’ therefore green is the appropriate colour for designers.

There is a quote placed underneath the bands title, ‘’we’ve made the album of our lives’’. This provides a small insight into the interview inside the magazine and may entice onlookers to purchase it. The quote does not give too much away or provide any detail on the album being mentioned, this leaves fans on a cliff-hanger and wanting to know their reasoning’s for making the ‘album of our lives’.

The main load of text is placed at the bottom of the page so the focus isn’t taken from the main photo. It is printed in a mixture of 4 colours, red, green, black and white, sticking to the house style. The sections of text are also placed overlapping each other in a misplaced fashion. I think this represents the overall magazine music genre.

There is an advert situated in the middle of the main big group of text, this makes it eye-catching and guarantees that those reading the text will notice it and more than likely pay it attention.

The text is printed in columns which is a typical magazine convention. A simple and tidy way of organising text in an easy structure to read.

The two page spread has a very simple colour scheme of black, white and hints of red. The black text on a white background allows the text to stand out as clear as possible as the two colours are contrasting of light and dark.

There is a small opening paragraph printed in a bigger font above the rest of the article. This entices the audience and gives a brief overview of the article

The image featured includes all band members with the lead singer displaying importance as he is stood in front of the rest of the band in a long shot. The majority of the band members are smiling which may transfer likability to the audience and persuade them to give their music a listen.

‘I thought we were gonna get killed after our first UK show!’ A quote is included on top of the photo to display the overall feeling of the band and briefly demonstrate their attitude and personality.

A quote of ‘Sign of things to come’ is printed in the largest font at the top of the page to demonstrate what the article is about and the overall theme. This quote hints that the band are up and coming and have big things coming there way.

The photo of the band is printed in black and white to fit with the house style and I also think its represents masculinity due to all the members being males. The black and white colour scheme also may represent the alternative music genre they contribute to.

There is a red strip of background behind the magazine logo and title of contents, this allows those printed in black and white font to stand out and are clear to read.

The target audience is expected to be similar to those photographed in the main image, who are expressing their love for the music genre of this magazine, which is rock.

There is issue number and cover date info at the top right hand corner for the interest of collectors to keep order of the magazines.

There is not too much of a house style on this page. There's a brief scheme of red, black and white to link with the usual text colour on the front cover and the rest of this magazine.

The contents down the right hand side of the page are in an organised structure of a column. There are headings such as ‘news’ and ‘posters’ to split up the contents and label them into specific, easy to find sections.

There is a small advert on the bottom right corner of the page about subscribing to the magazine and how to do so. This promotes the magazine for long term purchasing which may apply to the audience if they like what they see on the contents page.

The page appears to be split into sections in order to keep it organised and be easy to read and follow. This contrasts to the harsh, varied music styles mixed together to produce the genre of rock.

The genre of music promoted in this magazine is rock and the artwork or video to accompany this, usually includes violent and elaborate imagery. These factors link to the dominant image displayed in this contents page. A man upside down and people half dressed represents how people may react (some say dance) to the loud and harsh sounding rock music referred to throughout this magazine.

A letter from the editor is featured at the bottom of the page, it features a summary of the contents of the magazine from a personal, chatty perspective.

The Kerrang logo appears to be smashed with cracked lines over it. This is a connotation for violence and disruption which also represents the generic actions of those who listen to music of the rock genre. The fact that i

The house style of this magazine is the four colours red, white, black and gold. The colour red has connotations of murder sex and death which are often topics of hip hop songs. The colour gold has connotations of wealth and stardom, I think this represents jay-z’s overall appearance and attitude.

The cover star, Jay-Z displays a huge amount of dominance as the photo of the star is placed on top of other text items. This resembles the fact that he is in front of the rest, showing confidence and superiority.

‘42 pages of reviews’ is written in a small circle in the top right hand corner of the page to seclude itself from the rest of the magazine in order to stand out and be clear to the audience, and appealing to passers by who are contemplating buying the magazine.

The image of Jay Z is a close up of the stars head, a trimmed headshot filling the entire frame and displaying all facial features clearly with great detail. This provides the indication that the magazine is of high quality. He is looking directly at the camera which is body language appearing to invite the audience into reading the magazine.

The other artists featured in the magazine cover are printed in the colour red in order to stand out and entice the audience to by the magazine if they are a fan of any of these other artists, not necessarily the cover star.

The Q magazine logo is situated in the top left corner of the cover, it is in the same place for every issue and means the magazine is easy to distinguish due to the clear branding. It is in a red box allowing it to stand out and appear vibrant.

The barcode section at the bottom right corner of the magazine is vital in order for the magazine to be scanned and purchased. This section also usually includes the price and issue date of the magazine. The Price is not printed in a clear stand out section at the top of the page like some magazine types e.g women's gossip magazine where its in a bright shape advertising the cheap budget price. The difference here is, people buy this magazine for its contents rather than the price.

There is a very simplistic top section of the magazine with only ‘Contents’ written as the header This avoids taking the focus away from the rest of the more relevant information on the page. This section also fits perfectly with the house style of the main colours of red, white and black.

The house style colours are much more appropriate to the music genre of indie, pop and rock as a whole as apposed to colours such as orange and pink which I think would steer people away from buying the magazine who like that specific genre.

The main feature of the magazine (and more than likely the cover star) is Liam Gallagher on the right hand side of the page. His dominant image filling over half of the page resembles the fact that he is the star of the magazine and the main focus is on him, the main image also entices people to go and read the article. The camera angle is a close up, however Gallagher is not making any eye contact with the camera allowing him to appear edgy with attitude, fitting perfectly with the style of the magazine.

The contents list begins under the small heading ‘Features.’ Firstly, there is a feature that is printed in a bigger font, a different colour and alongside a small photo titled ‘Queen.’ This indicates that this feature is exciting and may strongly interests the audience however it is not the main feature which is surrounding the cover star, Liam Gallagher.

The contents are placed down the left hand side of the page, this is a traditional way to display this type of information therefore it is appropriate for the mature reader. It is simple and clear to understand, the headings of each feature mentioned are printed in bold and underlined with a thick red line providing ease for the reader and allowing the specific topics (band names) to stand out.

The image of Liam Gallagher appears to have been edited in order for it to appear with a more vintage style, this represents his old, stripped back tone, rather than being seen as modern day and contempory. In contrast to this, the image of the band Queen is in black and white which suggests it is an old image, however we know this hasn’t been done for effect as Queen are much older artists than Gallagher.

The numerical text at the bottom of the image of Liam Gallagher is printed in the largest font on the page. This is to catch the eye of the reader and make this article appear the most superior. This text is also the same font as the rest of the text on the page which I think contributes to the ease and simplicity for the mature reader.

The image of Jay Z is a close up headshot with the artist wearing sunglasses, I think this portrays a superior attitude. Also, wearing sunglasses indoors (in this case during a photo-shoot) has connotations of a cool urban style, alongside dominance and authority. Wearing sunglasses may mean that he is hiding something, some secrets that may be told within this article, enticing the audience to read. His facial expression is serious, he appears to be in control whilst lacking smiles and positivity, I think this represents some of his more diverse music.

The image of Jay Z is printed in two tone, to the left of the picture it appears more red and to the right of the picture it appears more blue. I think that this could represent a number of things, for example, light and shade, hot and cold or positive and negative. There are a few reasons why I think this could be, I mainly believe that this shows the contrast within Jay Z’s life between being a concealed family man and a world dominating rapper.

The short quote positioned at the bottom of the image gives readers a small insight into the contents of the article and may convince readers flicking through the magazine with no initial intention to read the article to give it a read. The fact that there is also another artist mentioned in this quote (Noel Gallagher) may attract his audience to also read the article in order to see how he is involved. The quote is printed in red font and in capital letters on a black background allowing it to stand out and appear vibrant and inviting

The page on the right hand side has a big, red translucent letter J filling the whole page. I think this ties the two pages of the double page spread together perfectly by carrying on the splash of red colour scheme. It also continues to represent his leadership. I think the colour red has connotations of power and passion. The font of the letter J is also the same font as the Q magazine logo which I think ensures that the article is exclusive to the magazine.