Masthead

The big and bold text used for the cover is unusually dark which differs from the usual red and white of NME. They signifies that the issue is different from a normal issue to the audience and that its based on a dark subject (the riots), but also because black connotates death and darkness. This reflects how the magazine is taking music further, and is going deeper than other magazines.

Similar Product Research: Front Cover Analysis

Sell-line
The main sell-line of Riots Devastate UK indie music implies that the magazine is linking up the music industry, with current affairs and how they are conflicting with each other. Moreover, the white text used contrasts from the background making it the focal point of the page, and very eye-grabbing. How YOU can help is a smaller sell line that makes the audience feel involved in the magazine and the personal pronoun you makes them feel included in the production on the magazine.

Main Image
The image of the policeman in riot gear reflects the topic expressed in the main sell-line of the riots, and therefore highlights to the audience the main thoughts of the magazine just by the powerful visuals. In addition, the fire in the background demonstrates the conflict between the rioters and the music industry. Also implies that this issue is dangerous and exciting.

Smaller Sell-lines
The contrasting colours of yellow and white differ yet again from the house colours of NME to reflect that the issue is a special edition. Also, the magazine puts the names of big artists in bold in order to lure in audiences of their fans but to reveal what the reader can expect too. Verbs like reveals and talks are used to highlight that the magazine has exclusive interviews and conversations with the biggest artists that competitive magazines cannot offer.

Price
The more expensive price of the magazine displays that it is targeted at a higher social class as these are the people who will be able to afford the magazine on a weekly basis despite its high price. These people will have the biggest margin to be able to spend money, in order to keep up to date with the Indie genre.

Barcode
A barcode is common to all magazines and therefore is included.

Masthead
The very large masthead used on this magazine in sans-serif displays that the magazines title is all that is needed for it to be able to sell as it is already successful. The bright red colour and large font make it instantly visible and luring and stands out very distinctively against the contrasting black and white background.

Similar Product Research: Front Cover Analysis 2

Smaller Sell-Lines
The minor sell lines may seem of less importance due to their size. However, they are still in contrasting colours from the black and white colour scheme of the background which makes them more noticeable. Also, the fact it includes the names of superstars who are very relevant of the time means that the audience will be persuaded to read the magazine due to the fact that their favourite artists will be included.

Main Image
The main image is a close up of the included artist T.I. wearing very formal clothing. This reflects that the magazine is going to be sophisticated and professional, but still fulfil the musical needs that the audience expect. Also, the fact that he is looking straight down the lens makes the reader feel as if he is looking straight at them, therefore giving the magazine a very personal feel.

General Conventions
The website is included in the bottom right corner of the cover to highlight to the audience that there is also an interactive site that they can go to in order to keep up to date. The web address is also relevantly placed on the black background, but is white to again, make it more noticeable. However, there is no barcode or price on the magazine, and this goes against what is commonly seen on the front cover of magazines.

Sell-line
The main sell lines of Aint no such thing as a secret snitch is bigger than the other sell lines to highlight its importance. Moreover, the bright red colour reflects the house colours of the magazine but also makes it easier for the audience to recognise the sell-lines as they clearly contrast from the white background. The informal language and slang gives the reader the impression that the magazine is both up-to-date and cool but ultimately matches the needs of the reader.

Masthead
The large red and white masthead differentiates itself from the rest of the cover in order for the reader to instantly recognise what magazine it is, and once they know the name, they know what to expect. Above the masthead, Hip Hop on a Higher level; is displayed and this strapline suggests that it is the best magazine out there in this genre, and therefore persuades the audience to only buy this magazine as it establishes itself as better than the others.

Special Edition
The fact that this is a special edition implies to the audience that it will be bigger and better than the usual edition because this is what we connote from the adjective Special. Moreover, the list of superstars in the Hip-Hop genre underneath the sell-line yet again displays what the magazine has to offer, but also states the magazines power as it can get so many big names in one issue. Setting its standards very high and making it difficult for other magazines in the same genre to compete with it.

Small Sell-Lines
The smaller sell lines placed around the edge of the main image implies that they are of less importance to the main article, although they still draw in an audience of people who are the fans of the mentioned performer.

Sell-Line
The main sell of Still trap or die reflects who the audience are (Americans who like Gangster Rap) as the slang used describes their life and what they find appealing. Moreover, the dramatic statement of death relates to the dramatic gang life in America and also to the artists, as this is where the majority of the big artists come from and the artists involved in this issue will no doubt have a link to the theme.

Barcode
A barcode is common to all magazines and therefore is included. The barcode in this case also includes the price and website for the magazine around the edge of it where fans can go for extra information.

Similar Product Research: Contents Page Analysis

The Masthead is in bold and keeps to the colour scheme so that the audience can continually recognize the magazine giving it a noticeable and distinctive look. Down the left hand side of the contents page you can see a Band Index which will inform you of all the bands in the issue. This is helpful as readers can pick out their favourite bands, and find the page they are on. Next to the masthead the words: This Week are in large font which clashes with the background to stand out. This is important information as it tells the audience that they have the latest news for them to read. The main story in the middle of the page has eye-catching colours which stand out from the house colours of the magazine to show that its an exclusive interview. The very bold title and the fact its in the middle of the page make it a focal point for this page. The contrasted colours are used again to make all the individual sub-headings stand out. This makes browsing for your favourite section easier as you can see each section easier. The main article is in different colours to show that its the main event. Everything you need to hear suggests that this magazine offers you everything you need, and something that no other similar magazine can offer. The word Exclusive is another word which states that this magazine has features that the others do not. The sell line in the bottom right hand corner of: The UKs No 1.. informs the reader that they are reading the best magazine of its kind. The box may be small and out of the way, but the clashing colours make the box noticeable.

The offer of subscribing to the magazine at the bottom of the page is in yellow to stand out from the other parts of the contents. It also tells you that you will save money, which will pull in more readers.

Main Image
The way the image is portrayed represents the artist as a criminal as he is positioned in a way that police would place criminals if they were going to be convicted. The tattoos represent the game as strong and brave individual hence young males could see him as a role model and females may find his tattoos appealing. The image takes most of the space on the contents page. At the top of the image there is a pull quote from the game this is very conventional. The headline about the game takes over the contents page as it is the most important story of the magazine. Vibe have put a line to divide the story from the contents page.

Offers
The contrasting colours of the black and red text to the white background makes the offer eye-catching and there for more likely for the reader to notice it. The magazine includes its website and the teaser of getting more news online so that they will view the website and feel more involved with the magazine and build a stronger relationship between them.

Logo
The logo of the magazine is on the bottom left of the page. However, the brand image created by this successful magazine means that the audience recognize the brand even though it is not the focal point of the page.

Colour Scheme
The house style of the contents page is consistent. Vibes have used black, white, orange and blue colours. Vibes have used the blue coloured righting to make the page number and the inside stories stand out so it is clearly visible to the reader. Most of the font on the page is in san serif font.

Features
The unusual layout of the contents page is further displayed through the Features column, which would normally be positioned down the side of the page and be the main focus of the page. However, in this case the image is the main focus and the features are all placed at the bottom of the page.

Main Image
The image is of the main artist of the issue stood on top of a pile of money. This symbolizes that the performer is very powerful and successful as these are what we connote with money but also that he is wasteful and disrespectful with it because he has too much of it. Moreover, his cap is on backwards which signifies that he is rebellious and stylish. Finally, a powerful facial expression is modeled and grabs the audiences attention and the fact he is looking straight into the camera makes the reader feel as if he is looking straight at them, and the intimidating glare makes them want to read the magazine to find out about him.

Layout
In the right corner there is again the brand logo XXL to make the reader aware which magazine they are reading, the logo also stands out with the bright red colour that is used in the logo. The date is reminding the readers which issue it is of the year, as XXL magazines are issued monthly. This magazine is Decembers and Januarys edition this may indicate that this edition will cover two months worth of content. There are various features of typography that are included to attract the readers attention. Headers in the page use capital letters this connotes formality, the headers that have been used are fairly short, this technique will make the magazine sound more faster. In the description of whats inside the magazine all artists name are in bold, this will attract the readers attention when they see those artists name such as 50 Cent or Snoop Dog. The use of putting these in bold highlights to the reader who is involved in this issue, and they will then be more inclined to read it if they see more people who they listen to are included in this issue.

Headline
The colloquial language used in the headline top billin directly targets the desired audience of younger people as they will both, understand what it means and be interested as the magazine reflects them.

Similar Product Research: Double Page Spread Analysis

The word Radar is in the top corner of the spread which suggests that this band are not as well known (under the radar) however this interview will most probably put them on the radar as the readers will read about them and look them up. The image of the band takes up both of the pages which is used to create them a Star Image. This will also help to familiarize them with the readers of the magazine, and start to build a relationship. The dark colours that the band are wearing corresponds with the house colours of the magazine but their style also relates to the indie theme of the magazine.

Radar is also written in blue which is different to the usual colours of the magazine. This may represent that its a one of special.

Young Rebel Set is the masthead on this double page and its also the name of the band. Its written in large bold font which will also contribute to them making a star image as the audience will remember the bands name. The simple column structure and the nonsophisticated font is used to make the information easy to read for the audience, this is different from newspapers. The three columns used are equally spaced and are laid out in a way which makes them easy to read, this differs from a newspaper where the columns can be various sizes and unequally spaced.

Theres also a small sell line of when the bands next gigs are and when their new album and singles are out in the bottom left hand corner. Its blue so it stands out and can be noticed easily.

In the background we can see a cargo ship and a wasteland. This implies that the band is not famous and are outsiders. However, their feature in this magazine will give them some popularity.

Other information in the top right hand corner of the page tells the audience the names of the band members and also a snippet of information about the band.

The variation of images used as a banner at the top of the page reflect how the featured artist is fun and playful, but the black and white colouring signifies that she is also serious.

The advertisement of Solanges new release is embedded inside of the border which clearly makes it visible, but is also there out of importance because ultimately Solange has done the interview to create herself a greater star image, and people will want to hear her music after reading about her. Therefore, advertising her music and where they can get it will interest the audience and boost her sales from the popularity she will gain from doing this interview.

The use of having Solange name in capitals as well as a different colour from the rest of the text makes it very outstanding and eyecatching to the reader so that they can straight away understand who the article is about incase they did not know already. It also represents her as a vibrant and unique person as these are the common connotations of bright colours.

The main image dominates the second page of the spread as is very bright and contrasts from the colours used on the rest of the pages. The bright colours could be connotations of Solange being something new and exciting to the music industry.

The sell line Forget her sister suggests to the audience that Solange is something new and exciting and possibly even better than her superstar sister Beyonce. The fact she has such a superstar of a sister, means people want to find out about her and see if she lives up to her family name created by her sister.

The pull quote taken from the interview is used to make the reader want to read the whole article so that they can understand what she is talking about. The bold and enlarged text draws the readers attention to the quote before they read the whole article and it is this which encourages them to read the entire thing.

The pull quote used dominates the majority of both pages and states how Lily Allen isnt an Attention seeker. However, the jagged font and contrasting colours of black and white contradicts what it says as these concepts are very eye-catching and attention seeking.

The plain layout of the page and use of dull colours brings our attention to the main image. This therefore makes the double page spread successful as the artist is meant to be the focal point of the page.

Additionally, from the pull quote the artist states that she is Just honest and this is very appealing to the reader as being honest is what they desire, as they want to know as much as they can about the performer because that is what makes the article a good read and exciting.

Underneath the pull-quote we are informed that Lily is a breath of fresh air. The metaphor used intrigues the reader and makes us want to read on as we want to understand why she is different to everyone else and is creating so much excitement in the music industry. Although, it is also contradictory against the pull quote as it says she tries to get behind the headlines. Whereas before we were told she isnt an attention seeker. This confusion forces us to read the article so that we can ultimately make our own decision on the matter.

The red clothing, dark make-up and dark hair reflect the rock genre of the magazine as these are all things that we would associate with rock. The red shirt can also connote danger and excitement which again, is tied into the rock genre.

The picture used on this double page article is of Lilly Allen she is likely to draw audience that are attracted to the Indie genre of music as she dressed in a way that will appeal to Indie readers to the magazine. As she is a popular artist she will attract more readers to the magazine and a lot of readers may look up to her which will again increase the magazines popularity. The picture used of Lilly Allen has been used very effectively as the pose used shows dominance and attitude which this type of music is all about. The pose used links in with the quote used on the top of the article PEOPLE THINK IM AN ATTENTION SEEKER, BUT IM JUST HONEST this shows that she doesnt really seem to care about what people think of her shell do and say what will make her happy she is an independent and determined woman.