Market Research 2 & 3

Kerrang! Magazine Analysis

Rock Sound Magazine Analysis

Rock Sound magazine is “a British magazine which champions alternative music. The magazine aims at being more "underground" and less commercial, whilst also giving coverage to more well known acts.” “The UK edition of Rock Sound was launched in March 1999 by the French publisher Editions Freeway.”

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_sound)

Basic Information:

Name: Rock Sound

Publisher: Editions Freeway

Release: Monthly

Price: £3.80 (correct as of December 2010)

I shall be analyzing the July 2010 issue of the magazine. I shall analyse the front cover of the magazine, the contents page of the magazine, I shall also analyse a double page spread within the magazine, I think that as my double page spread will link to my cover page I should use a double page spread relevant to the cover page, hence I have chosen to analyse the double page about the band on the front cover “Parkway Drive” (pages 64 and 65), this is because their name is advertised along the top line displaying the magazines contents, these are all displayed below:

Deconstruction of Features:

Front cover:

The front cover of the magazine looks very busy, this is made up of a mid shot of the band that is interviewed in the magazine. The background that is used is a shot of the clear sky, this could either suggest a contrast or a similarity to the bands personality, meaning that they are either bright welcoming and happy, or that they are dark and unwelcoming.

Contents page:

The contents page of the magazine is split vertically, the top part is a photograph of a band, and a page number, this is a suggestive photo that makes you want to  They then have a section on the bottom half of the page dedicated to the listings and the editors statement. The use of background in the contents page helps make the divide more prominent, this is because the top part is black and the bottom white/ cream, which is a very sharp contrast.

Double page spread:

This double page spread refers to the cover page, as it is advertised on the cover page. It is an analysis of a rock band (“Bullet For My Valentine”), it describes the first live show that they have played in almost a y ear, this is surrounded by live photos from the venue and of the band and its members when they are half way through the set. The images are contained in boxes and have brief captions which help to explain the story behind the bands live performance. The textual content of the page isn’t as dense as the content of the “Metal Hammer” magazine yet describes in a different way the subject of the page.

LIIAR Deconstruction:

• Language
• Institution
• Ideology
• Audience
• Representation

Language:

The language used in the magazine seems to have a consistently maintained sense of non formality to it, which would make the reader more comfortable and allow them to connect with the magazine on a more comfortable level. The use of small captions containing light humour or puns is a common practice in this magazine, this is one of the many textual styles used in the “Kerrang!” magazine.

Institution:

The institution is represented in the magazines house style and its general page designs because it shows that it is young, fresh and alternative. The use of black and white on the cover create a sense of division between the adverts, yet the colours used seem to bring the articles together as they are all natural tones and do not hugely contrast each other, this could suggest to the reader that all of the bands and musicians on the front of the magazine are brought together around this institution, this could make the reader think that the magazine is the cornerstone of the industries news and works with the artists closely, making them look upon Kerrang! as a more reliable and source for rock news and current affairs.

Ideology:

The ideology of Kerrang! magazine is that the rock scene and the controversial social nature of these bands is important, and is entertaining to the general public, this drives the fact that a lot of Kerrang!’s articles are based around an aspect of a musicians live tour/ life/ social life and contains a relatively small amount of interviews with bands about there recorded material such as albums or compilations. The content of Kerrang! represent the institution as it reflects the more social aspect of the rock scene.

Audience:

The audience of Kerrang! magazine is much broader than the Metal Hammer magazine as it incorporates a lot of different music types to Metal Hammer including the ones displayed in Metal Hammer. It contains a lot of popular alternative musicians and aims at the more mainstream aspects of the genre. The audience of the magazine is reflected in the cover price and the production format (time between each issue). Kerrang! is a weekly magazine and it costs £2.20, I think that this is marketed this way cleverly to attract both readers of a more mature age and also the younger teenage audience, meaning that the relatively small cover price is more affordable and appealing for an impulse purchase. The weekly release of the magazine means that monthly more is spent on Kerrang! than Metal Hammer but as it is small amounts the consumer doesn’t consciously consider this when buying each magazine. The quality of the paper used for the media is representation of both the cost and the audience also as it is printed on relatively low grade paper which is thin and commonly is damaged. This is probably used because it could not be an issue to  the audience, because they may be more bothered about the content of the magazine and getting there “fix” of alternative entertainment gossip.

Representation:

The magazine Kerrang! is made by one of the big three magazine publishers Bauer, which also produce well known weekly magazines for varying audiences. It is represented as being a guide to the industry news and entertainment news  surrounding the rock genre, they tend to market themselves as a contemproary music magazine and most of the artists featured are young and newly acclaimed acts in the rock scene. It also sets a house style for the magazines brand image because of the very recognizable components of the style, this means that the reader will consider Kerrang! to be a household name within the realms of the rock genre.

Kerrang! is a “rock music magazine published by Bauer Consumer Media in the United Kingdom.”. It “commenced publication on 7 June 1981 and was edited by Geoff Barton, initially as a one-time supplement in the Sounds newspaper, which focuses on the genre New Wave of British Heavy Metal and the rise of other hard rock acts.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kerrang!)

Basic Information:

Name: Kerrang! Magazine

Publisher: Bauer Media Group

Release: Weekly

Price: £2.20 (correct as of 08 May 2010)

I shall be analyzing the second released issue in May 2010. This issue’s cover features “The King Blues” which are a band within this music scene. I shall analyse the front cover of the magazine, the contents page of the magazine, I shall also analyse a double page spread within the magazine; these are all displayed below:

Front Cover

Contents Page

Double Page Spread

Front cover:

The front cover of the magazine is very busy, it has several images, linked to several internal articles. The title banner of the magazine rests behind the main image used on the front cover of the magazine, this creates a layered effect. The middle banner explains the cover image and gives the reader a teaser of the content.

Contents page:

The contents page of the magazine is split vertically, the top part is used for promotion of the biggest article in the magazine, in this case an interview with a famous guitar player/ rock artist. They then have a section on the bottom half of the page dedicated to the listings and the editors statement. The use of background in the contents page helps make the divide more prominent, this is because the top part is black and the bottom white/ cream, which is a very sharp contrast.

Double page spread:

This double page spread refers to the cover page, as it is advertised on the cover page. It is an analysis of a rock band (“Bullet For My Valentine”), it describes the first live show that they have played in almost a y ear, this is surrounded by live photos from the venue and of the band and its members when they are half way through the set. The images are contained in boxes and have brief captions which help to explain the story behind the bands live performance. The textual content of the page isn’t as dense as the content of the “Metal Hammer” magazine yet describes in a different way the subject of the page.

LIIAR Deconstruction:

• Language
• Institution
• Ideology
• Audience
• Representation

Language:

The language used in the magazine seems to have a consistently maintained sense of non formality to it, which would make the reader more comfortable and allow them to connect with the magazine on a more comfortable level. The use of small captions containing light humour or puns is a common practice in this magazine, this is one of the many textual styles used in the “Kerrang!” magazine.

Institution:

The institution is represented in the magazines house style and its general page designs because it shows that it is young, fresh and alternative. The use of black and white on the cover create a sense of division between the adverts, yet the colours used seem to bring the articles together as they are all natural tones and do not hugely contrast each other, this could suggest to the reader that all of the bands and musicians on the front of the magazine are brought together around this institution, this could make the reader think that the magazine is the cornerstone of the industries news and works with the artists closely, making them look upon Kerrang! as a more reliable and source for rock news and current affairs.

Ideology:

The ideology of Kerrang! magazine is that the rock scene and the controversial social nature of these bands is important, and is entertaining to the general public, this drives the fact that a lot of Kerrang!’s articles are based around an aspect of a musicians live tour/ life/ social life and contains a relatively small amount of interviews with bands about there recorded material such as albums or compilations. The content of Kerrang! represent the institution as it reflects the more social aspect of the rock scene.

Audience:

The audience of Kerrang! magazine is much broader than the Metal Hammer magazine as it incorporates a lot of different music types to Metal Hammer including the ones displayed in Metal Hammer. It contains a lot of popular alternative musicians and aims at the more mainstream aspects of the genre. The audience of the magazine is reflected in the cover price and the production format (time between each issue). Kerrang! is a weekly magazine and it costs £2.20, I think that this is marketed this way cleverly to attract both readers of a more mature age and also the younger teenage audience, meaning that the relatively small cover price is more affordable and appealing for an impulse purchase. The weekly release of the magazine means that monthly more is spent on Kerrang! than Metal Hammer but as it is small amounts the consumer doesn’t consciously consider this when buying each magazine. The quality of the paper used for the media is representation of both the cost and the audience also as it is printed on relatively low grade paper which is thin and commonly is damaged. This is probably used because it could not be an issue to  the audience, because they may be more bothered about the content of the magazine and getting there “fix” of alternative entertainment gossip.

Representation:

The magazine Kerrang! is made by one of the big three magazine publishers Bauer, which also produce well known weekly magazines for varying audiences. It is represented as being a guide to the industry news and entertainment news  surrounding the rock genre, they tend to market themselves as a contemproary music magazine and most of the artists featured are young and newly acclaimed acts in the rock scene. It also sets a house style for the magazines brand image because of the very recognizable components of the style, this means that the reader will consider Kerrang! to be a household name within the realms of the rock genre.