Magazine Cover Analysis 2 By Oscar Mitchell

Barcode/Date/Issue/Website Masthead The masthead is very much involved in the main cover image and is overlapped by some of it, the bold and white letters stand out and the crack effect relates to the genre of magazine it is – rock. The name ‘KERRANG!’ reflects the sound of an electric guitar being strummed. This is very genre specific as electric guitars are widely used in rock bands. The cracking effect on the writing is portrayed to be caused by the “KERRANG” sound. Main Cover Image The image focus’s on the band members faces, they use a strong direct gaze to emphasise the band and pull in the audience. The main band member is at the front in the middle, his head is over the masthead whereas the other two are behind the masthead. This shows who the leader of the band is. A medium shot is used to show all 3 band members including facial expressions and some body language. The band members are clearly wearing make-up to emphasise their facial features and expressions. Their eyes are the most noticeable feature, almost crazed and reflect the band’s persona of over the top, mad behaviour. The background matches their costumes (monochrome colours). Main Cover Line The band’s name is the cover line. It is written in a bold, green font which makes it connect with the name of the band ‘Green Day’. The secondary cover line is a quote from the interview, the interview we are given tells the reader what the interview is about and what they can expect if they read through. Cover Mount A cover mount is a FREEBIE which is there to catch the readers attention and convince them to buy the magazine. A freebie may be enough to convince someone to buy it if they were unsure. The cover mount of this magazine is 5 free posters which are used to entice the reader in to buying the magazine. Barcode/Date/Issue/Website The barcode is there for the seller of the magazine, the website is there to entice the reader. Layout – thirds – bottom third – secondary cover lines and images Secondary cover lines and images – colours used, font size etc. Layout The way objects are arranged on a page to attract the reader’s eye. On this cover the layout is separate boxes containing images which are accompanied by anchorage text. The layout is clearly in thirds, it shows the top third, middle third and bottom third as well as left third, middle third and right third. This layout keeps everything in order which works well as it can look messy but is easily accessible to the audience. Buzzwords ‘FREE’, ‘PLUS!’ and ‘EXCLUSIVE!’ are buzzwords as they are used to draw in the reader and excite them with the idea of a free item with the magazine or the idea of even more content inside with the word plus followed by an exclamation mark.

Target Audience Kerrang! Magazine is a rock magazine aimed at 16 to 30 year olds, it is more aimed towards a general white ethnicity and has a wider male audience that female. It appeals to people with a social grade of mainly E and D but could also apply to others. The psychographic profile connected with this magazine is the armchair rebel (for teens) and for adults, the struggler as these people are hugely rock genre fans.