Content Analysis of a Music Magazine

Front Cover Analysis:

The front cover clearly and explicitly shows the audience what the magazine is about and what the magazine's focus music genre is. The magazine itself is largely associated with alternative and indie music but the front cover specifically shows a grime punk band called Slaves. The front cover is also quite patronizing because Slaves - the two men who take up the majority of the magazine cover - are staring straight at you. Not only this but the text is similar in the way that it is patronizing because the phrase 'YOU'VE BEEN TOLD...' is quite forceful and strict. This also links into the suitable age range for the magazine because the fact it is quite patronizing and powerful suggests that it is probably not suitable for children. Throughout the magazine there are swear words which also suggest how the magazine is not suitable for young people. Therefore I would say that the front cover is successful in the way that it shows what type of music is featured in the magazine and what type of target audience it suits.

I would also say that the front cover is bright and vibrant because the use of the contrasting colours: red, white, black and yellow make the text and images pop and bold on the page. Also because the men are positioned across most of the page, it suggests how the magazine want that band to be the centre of attention. Because the band is so prominent on the page, when you first pick up the magazine, you are instantly drawn to them. Like the text, the men also emphasise the magazines music genre because they have tattoos and wear things that wouldn't normally be seen on, for example, a pop magazine.

Written around the magazine cover are names of numerous artists which are mentioned in the magazine but the main artist, Slaves, has been written largely across the centre of the magazine in red which not only makes the name bold and stand out, but it makes the magazines genre quite obvious and identifiable because you wouldn't have a grime punk band being centre of attention on a pop music magazine cover. Not only this but the fact that they have been written across the front cover in bold lettering suggests how they are of importance within the magazine. This is also shown by their two page spread article and their pictures throughout the magazine.

In this specific magazine, there are no giveaways like CD's or posters however when I was looking for a magazine to analyse, I found numerous other magazines which did include free CD's and posters for the buyer. I feel that they have added this additional 'something' to make the users want to buy the magazine more because it comes with a free gift - something we all like. Also the magazine encourages readers to purchase the magazine because around the cover numerous different artists have been written therefore showing the audience that the magazine mentions a variety of artists thus suits more than one type of audience therefore more people are inclined to buy the magazine.

Contents Page Analysis:

The contents of this magazine is clear and easy to read and decipher. It explicitly states what is written and what happens on each page, e.g.: Reviews, Things We Like etc. as well as giving the artist that each page talks about for example: on page 14 it focuses on the band 'Bring Me The Horizon'. Not only this but it also gives a column dedicated to the week's top features which include artists that have been interviewed or are rising in popularity quite significantly. Also, these artists which are featured are normally favourites for the week so they get quite a bit of magazine space.
There is also a 'Band List' in the contents page which lists all the artists mentioned in the magazine and the pages that they are featured in - these artists are written in alphabetical order and this is helpful because if you're looking for a specific artist, it is easy to find both in the list and in the magazine because it has been clearly marked and written.

Within the magazine there are 8 different adverts for things like alcohol, technology, gigs, next editions of the magazine and other magazines. These all suit the reader and target audience well because they are things that they would be interested in. There are also 16 advertisements for gigs and again, these are gigs that the target audience would be interested in and would enjoy because the bands/artists which are mentioned are all bands which suit the magazine genre as well as suiting the target audiences likes.

There are 12 pages dedicated to reviews in the magazine. There are reviews about albums, films and live performances and covers a variety of artists - these are all mentioned in the contents page.  They are rated out of 10 and this allows the reader to see what was popular and good and what wasn't so popular and good this week. Therefore much like the contents page, reviews are helpful and clear to understand.

Other than this, the rest of the magazine is dedicated to various other stories and editorials which are written in the contents page so it is easy to navigate around the magazine and find specific artists. The contents of the magazine is a mixture of stories, reviews, advertisements with the additional crossword at the back therefore covers all aspects thus is suitable for the target audience.  

Double Page Spread Analysis:

The double page spread I have chosen focuses on the band: Slaves. In this double page spread,  there are two large photos at the top of the page which are quite prominent on the page. One is of Isaac - a member of Slaves - crowd surfing topless at Glastonbury and the other is of Laurie - the other member of Slaves - with his hands in the air clapping. Both photos show a large crowd showing the great popularity of the band and both photos show how the audience are enjoying their performance, and how Slaves like to interact with the audience also. Because in one of the photos Isaac is topless and is crowd surfing, it suggests how the band is careless and fun. It also goes well with the music genre because you would normally consider crowd surfing to be done by a punk rock band, rather than a pop band.

The language used in this article is quite strong because there is a use of swear words suggesting again how it is not suitable for young children. It also suggests how the band doesn't care what they say and because this isn't a good moral message to send out, it suggests how young children again, are not suited to this type of music/musician. This is why I would say that the language used in this article, because it is quite heavy is only suitable for those who don't mind swearing and are young adults. Not only this but the article also uses quite complex words such as 'perilously' and 'auspicious' which are words that young children and teenagers may not understand. This suggests how the article is specifically targeted to those who understand complex language like young adults etc.

In my opinion, I don't think the band is trying to promote anything specifically but they want to be interviewed  because they believe that they're giving a message that makes people feel happy and is something people can relate to. Also I believe that the reason why they were interviewed was because of their fast rising popularity and because "They've invaded the Top 10 and shut down Glastonbury...", suggesting how this band is something that people want to hear and read about.

On the double page spread there is also a section which discusses the bands biggest moments for example, its debut singles and performances. However it also mentions at the end about their first big headline tour in the UK in November 2015 and their performance at Reading, suggesting how maybe they could have been promoting this tour and performance.

The article itself is rather positive because it talks quite considerably about the bands successes and achievements like their debut album 'Are You Satisfied?'. Personally I don't think that there is any point that the magazine is trying to make about this band because the article generally talks about the history of the members and how they became a band. It also talks about their live performances and how they are a "startling powerful live band" therefore suggesting how the magazine feel positively about the band.

Despite all the positives mentioned, the article also talks about people who dislike the band and  how people have dismissed them as "fucking appalling." Not only this but it talks about how the band thought that NME - the magazine - was "just trying to stir up shit" after the magazine made a comment about how the band sounded like Take That. This shows how despite the positives about the band, negatives are also mentioned; negatives which put the band in a negative light due to the swearing and the arguments that the band caused. Other than this however, I would say that the article is quite positive about the band and hopeful about the bands future.