Key Brand Values- Individuality, alternative music, student audience
Publisher- United Newspapers (1981-91) , EMAP (1991-2008), Bauer media group (2008 - present)
Masthead- Kerrang!
Tagline- Live Life Loud
Price- £2.20
House Style- Red white and black, dark bold colours
Kerrang! was launched 7th June 1981 by United Newspapers. It was originally intended to be a one-time supplement in 'Sounds' newspaper which focused on genre 'New Wave of British Heavy Metal', a similar genre that Kerrang! focuses on. It was initially edited by Geoff Barton whilst it was under United Newspapers control, however under Bauer Media Groups control, it is edited by Nichola Browne. This magazine is devoted to alternative and rock music, reviewing gigs and getting personal information from the featured bands. At first glance, Kerrang!'s front cover suggests its target audience is teenagers/students who listen to the type of music featured within the magazine. This can be assumed because of the cover image, 'Bring Me The Horizon' being of people in such an age range. The image connotes a sense of recklessness and rebellion which in turn is portrayed throughout the magazine itself. 'The magazine's name is onomatopoeic and refers to the sound made when playing a power chord on an electric guitar.' This is taken from Wikipedia, and helps once again with the identification of the target audience as electric guitars and power chords have strong connotations to a teenage audience.
As with the majority of Kerrang! issue, the control image slightly obscures the masthead. This indicates that Kerrang! believe it is a widely enough known magazine to get away with this yet still be an easily recognisable media product. This could be classed as a convention of Kerrang!'s front cover as it regularly features and has become an almost mandatory element of the magazine.
As you can see, on all these front covers, the main artists head slightly obscures the masthead. Another element that could be classed as a convention or regular of a Kerrang! front cover is the positioning of the feature lines at the top and the bottom of the page. These show who and what stories are worth reading inside. All the artists that appear here also belong to the same genre of music that Kerrang! features.
On the 'Bring me the Horizon' issue, the banner headline is the second largest type face on the page. This focuses the readers attention to it. The fact it is written in white also draws the readers attention as very little white is used on Kerrang!'s front cover, excluding the background of the masthead. The red used for the tagline 'Northern Uproar' connotes rebellion and also is in strong contrast with the white banner headline and also the black of the suit jackets worn by the cover artist.
The cover lines and supporting images found underneath the main cover image are again a regular feature on the front cover of Kerrang!. All artists featured are seen as the genre of music that Kerrang! features in its magazine. The specific images used all connote wildness and energy. The red and white used to border these image all keep in key with the colour scheme of red and white that is unique to this cover. The graphic used to anchor these images 'K! Week of rock poster special!' as well as the 'Plus!' are made to look as if they have been put on after printing. This technique is used to add a sense of youthfulness and revolution that is portrayed thoughout the front cover and in turn throughout the magazine itself. The barcode, price, issue number and website all appear in the bottom right hand corner of the front cover which is a norm for magazines.
No comments:
Post a Comment