MUSIC FRONT COVER AND CONTENTS

PAGE ANALYSIS

SAMANTHA ETRIDGE

MastheadThe masthead is in a distinctive font - used on every cover of this

Magazine - and contains vibrant colours inside the spaces of the letters; this is useful because it makes the masthead very recognisable and unique. The actual text is in a very clear and understandable font so that it is easy to read and is also in black so that it stands out from the background.

Cover LinesThe title of the cover line stories are in yellow so that they stand out and the information about the story is in black to make it bold. These cover stories are quite unusual because the titles font is smaller that the

information text. Key Cover

LineThe key cover line is in a completely different font to the rest of the magazine cover and is also in black so that it catches your attention and stands out.The cover line anchors the image in two ways: it is the models name and because the font is quite curly, it kind of matches the models outfit because of the loops at the bottom of her dress.

Secondary Lead

The secondary lead is in the same font and colours

as the key cover line to show that it is the second

most important but because it is above the

masthead it is quite hard to notice unless you are actually looking for it.

Key ImageThe flowers that the model is wearing don’t particularly help to anchor the key cover line but they emphasize the girliness in the magazine and the colours also match the colour scheme.The dress that the model is wearing, her makeup and her hair also match the colour scheme of the magazine and the curls at the bottom of her dress match the curves of the font of the key cover line. The models facial expression and posture anchor the key cover line because it says that she is the new queen and because of how she is positioned she looks quite elegant.

Menu StripUnlike the rest of the cover stories, the menu strip uses white for the underlying text instead of black; this shows that it isn’t a cover line. The text is quite small so it isn’t that noticeable but because the colours are quite bright, they stand out from the background.

MastheadThe masthead stands out the most on this cover because it is highlighted in red and although that ties in very well with the colour scheme it is very bright and eye catching.The masthead is the same on every single one of this companies magazine, therefore it is very recognisable. The text is also in bold which helps the text stand out even further.

BannerThe banner helps to emphasize how good the magazine actually is; being the UK’s biggest magazine is quite a high claim so the target audience would be thinking highly of the magazines contents.

Key Cover LineA hierarchy of text is used here to make the word ‘ROCKS’ stand out more because it makes Cheryl Cole seem more edgy; It could also refer to the fact that her normal music is far from rock music so she is changing her sound a little bit.The word rocks is in red because it is associated with danger and this ties in with the key image.

Cover LinesThe cover lines are set out in a kind of grid formation. There is a very good sense of continuity with the colour scheme. The colour of each cover line is different to separate the different stories.

Menu StripThe text of the menu strip is quite small because it isn’t as important as the rest of the things on the cover and the text isn’t in bold either whereas most of the text on the cover is. Key Image

The rain in the image has been photo shopped so that the rain stands out in the picture and so that it ties in with the colour scheme. She has dark eyes and black leather clothes on, she also has a spiky ring on which anchors the key cover line in the sense that she looks very edgy. This image makes her seem quite dark and dangerous which can both be associated with rock music.

Secondary LeadThere isn’t a particular secondary lead but I think that this cover line sticks out the most from the others because it has been put inside a grey circle sticker.

Colour Scheme And Page Layout

The colour scheme is quite simple but it works really well because the important information that needs to stand out, stands out. The models clothing and hair in the image also helps to tie in with the colour scheme. The page layout is a grid formation – the white space between the stories makes them look like they are in imaginary boxes and they are also in one third of the magazine and the image takes up about two thirds.

Numbers The numbers are in a different colour to all of the headings so that they stand out better but they still match the colour Scheme; the numbers are also non-consecutive

Hierarchy Of Font Size

It is useful that all of the headings are in a large font size compared to the smaller text of information underneath because it helps to separate the different stories.

Use Of Image The model in the image is wearing a beige and black striped jumper which anchors the colour scheme perfectly.The caption kind of anchors the image because it says how she loves music and she is holding a guitar but how she is positioned doesn’t really tie in with her statement.

Mode Of AddressUnder all of the headings there is quite an in depth explanationof what to expect in the content; there are no images to explain further what the page could be about – just numbers.The way that the smaller text is written makes it seem quite gossipy because it is talking about the person.

Brand IdentityThe brand identity stands out from the contents page because it is highlighted in red. It is a very recognisable logo which is useful so the reader knows what they are reading.

Brand IdentityThe magazines brand identity is quite hidden at the bottom of the page – the text is really small and is in the same colour as the rest of the text on the contents page.

Use Of ImageThis particular image makes the magazine seem quite old fashioned because it is in black and white but it works because it actually matches the colour scheme of the magazine.The image doesn’t really anchor the image because it says how the man in the picture lead a sheltered life and he had a private existence. The caption on the image uses a serif font which makes it look a bit more classy and interesting.

Colour scheme and Page layout

Most of the text on the contents page is in black to be formal and so that it matches the theme of the magazine. The headlines are in bold so that they stand out more than the under lying text. The colour scheme is quite simple and plain. The website near the bottom of the page stands out a lot because it is in blue whereas the only other two colours used are pink and black.The contents page uses a grid formation that helps to split up the page – it is also organized into thirds.

NumbersThe numbers are all in bold red to make them stand out. The numbers are in the same text and are the same size as the headlines.

Mode Of AddressThe text is very informative; it’s as if the author is trying to tell some kind of story about all of the different stories to the readers.

Hierarchy Of TextThere is no hierarchy of text – all of the text is relatively the same and is spread out equally across the page.

Masthead The boxes being slanted and messy anchors the masthead because it looks like they are freaking out. The use of alliteration makes the sentence more interesting for the reader. The font of the masthead is in bold and is very clear so that it is easy for the reader to read. The colours used definitely make the words stand out and they still tie in with the colour scheme. The language is quite girly and gossipy which is also anchored by the colour scheme because the colours used are stereotypically girly colours.

Stand First/Entry PointThe stand first is written in a serif font to make it more informal and fun – to make it match the them of the magazine better.

ColumnsThe columns aren’t actually made obvious because there are no lines separating them but because the are all aligned left, it creates jagged edges which helps to separate them.

Negative Space/Gutter The negative space helps to give the page a bit of shape and because the text is left aligned, it shows you where one column stops and where the other starts.

Pull Out Quote/Caption To AnchorThe two pull out quotes are in different colours because they are about two different topics but they are in the same font to symbolise that they are both pull out quotes. The pull out quotes are in the same font as the masthead which makes them seem important.

Pull Out QuoteThis pull out quote catches your attention because it is very vague which naturally makes you want to know more about the topic. It is also in bright pink ( the same colour as all of the subheadings) which makes it interesting.

Sub HeadingsThe sub headings stand out against the white background because they are in pink and the are also in bold which makes them more noticeable.

Side BarThe side bar is in bright yellow which sticks to the colour scheme and also makes it stand out because it is really eye catching.

Body TextThe body text is considerably small compared to the rest of the text on the feature article. The sub headings for this feature are in a different colour and font because it is question

and answer.

Colour Scheme

The colours used are very vibrant which are the kind of colours that would catch the attention of a teenager and because they are what are known as ‘girly’ colours, I would say that this particular page is aimed at teenage girls.

MastheadThe mast head is in a serif font to make it seem undecided between a formal font and an informal font. The masthead is the biggest text on the Page and is very bold. It is very vague, making the reader want to know more about the article and also uses speech marks and ellipses to show that there is more to that particular sentence.

Drop CapThe drop cap stands out because it is the second most biggest font on the page and it is in bright red so it is eye catching. This is useful because it shows where the body text starts.

Pull Out QuoteThe pull out quote doesn’t completely stick to the colour scheme but it still works because it just makes it stand out more. The text inside the pull out quote is someone's speech therefore it has been put in bold italics with the persons name just in bold.

Body TextThe body text is in a question and answer format. The questions are highlighted in red and the answers are in black; all of the body text is the same size.

ColumnsThe columns are separated by lines which makes the page layout seem like it is in thirds but the page is actually in a kind of grid formation because the key image takes up a quarter of the page ; the page is split into 4 quarters.

Stand FirstThe stand first contains two names that are in red and bold so that they stand out and catch peoples eye. The stand first is also in italics so that the audience know that it is separate from the body text.

ImagesThese images are slanted which breaks the rules of the grid formation and gives a sense of a little rebellion. The caption on the images is very small and quite hard to read.

Brand IdentityThe logo of the magazine ties in with the colour scheme and stands out because it is surrounded by a red outline. It also stands out because it has a black background and bright yellow text that is also in a different font to the rest of the page.

Main ImageThe clothes that the model in the image is wearing match the colour scheme of the page. The blue guitar stands out most on the page because it is blue and there is nothing else on the page that is blue. The caption on the image is in white text so that it stands out a little bit because it is really small.

Side BarThe side bar sticks with the colours of the colour scheme but also changes it because of have the text in white instead of red or black – this helps show that the side bar is about something different to the main article.

Negative Space/Gutter

The negative/gutter space is used to separate the body text and this is helped further by the columns being separated by think black lines. All of the text is left aligned leaving jagged edges down the right hand side – this furthers the separation of each column.

ColumnsThe second part of the double page is also split into quarters (the key image takes up three quarters and the text takes up one) which gives the magazine a sense of continuity.

ImagesThis page also contains two images that break the rules of the grid formation by being slanted. The pictures are also in an actual picture fame which makes them seem quite authentic.