Double Page Spread Research: NME

This double page spread on Lily Allan comes from NME magazine. The heading used is effective in relating to an Indie audience, as the white font on a black background is bold so instantly draws the audience in. The style of the writing resembles newspaper cuttings, and is very disjointed, which goes with the idea that Lily Allen is misunderstood by general society. This is also a theme that is prevalent in indie culture, so many of the readers would relate.

Lily's outfit also fits in with the house style of the magazine of red, white and black which makes a direct, visible connection between her and the quote. Furthermore check (lumberjack) shirts are commonly worn among indie girls, as they want to show that a shirt isn't just for a man. The point of being 'indie' is to show that you are outside of regular stereotypes, so by lilt wearing this it diectly relates to the target audience.

The text that is used for the interview is quite small so that the readers have to concentrate to read it, so it makes them stop and read it, instead of just flicking through.

Double Page Spread Research: Kerrang

In this double page spread from Kerrang Magazine it is obvious that it is aimed at people interested in rock/indie music. This is from the costume of the artists being quite ecentric, and there poses suggest an element of wildness, strong themes in the rock and indie world. Furthermore the black and white images used show the band in a dressing room. This makes the audience feel an intamacy with the band, as if they have been invited in like a V.I.P, which when reading the interveiw will make them relate to the artist even more because they like they know them.

Red is used in this to frame the pictures and highlight the band members that are responding to the questions. As the article is about them sharing secrets, the red could represent passion, temptation and maybe even blood as they admit things that they have down wrong in the past. This again creates an relationship between the audience and the band, as we have all done things we shouldn't have. Furthermore it cements the idea of 'rockstar rebellion' something that specifically relates to rock/indie music. The black used in the background shows that what they are discussing has been hidden, or that it is literally dark and shameful.

The font used in the heading related to the font that the band use on the album cover for their single 'Dirty Little Secrtes' so that their fans will instantly recognise it. So here the magazine is specifically targeting fans of this band, that bought their album. The word 'Secrets' is an a bold font that is speckled with black so that the audience literally see 'dirty secrets'.

Quotes from the bands members are also extracted and put in bold such 'I was tripping balls'. 'Tripping' is a slang term for being under the influence of drugs, and drug use is common in rock and indie circles. Also using a slang term brings the magazine to the level of the reader, so it is like a conversation.



How has this research influenced my editorial decisions?

From researching these three contents pages, as well as a rage of others, my decision to do an indie/rock magazine has been cemented as I think they make for a more music focused and informative magazine. Furthermore I have come to understand that the contents page is where the readers need to get a feel for the whole magazine, and that the genre favoured suits there taste. Therefore as I want my content page to be organised into categories so that my audience will see a range of information being offered. This is especialy important as I am aiming at young adults that want as much for there money as possible. I am also planing to use images of more than one artist, to make sure that my audience understands that my magazine is focused on the indie genre, and that they will find serveral interesting artists. I may also use an extract from my article on my double page spread, either as a quote or a short explaination to encourge them to read on.

Contents Research: Vibe

This is the contents page is from the Hip-Hop/R&B magazine Vibe. Unlike the two previous Indie/Rock magazines the sole focus of this page is on the image and the artist. Therefore this magazine sends a clear message that what readers will find in this magazine is in depth interviews with some of the most famous Hip-Hop and R&B artists, a lot of photos of 'sexy stars', and some discussion of fashion and merchandise. Therefore showing that this magazine is aimed at people that tend to be concerned more about the actual artist than the music. Which is quite the opposite to any Indie/Rock magazine that I have researched. The image also places a huge importance on the chains around his neck, making this an apirational image representing a desire to be rich and powerful. His tattoo of 'Money is nothing without Respect' shows that respect is a key theme in Hip-Hop magazines.

The font used to descibe the features is very small, this is so that it can give a brief describtion without taking the emphasis away from the centre image. A disadvantage of this is that the audience do not realy get a full idea of what they are going to be reading about in the magazine, and there are no page numbers to direct them straight to these articles. Whereas the two rock magazines made it very clear to prospective readers what they could expect from the whole magazine and how they could quicky find the infprmation they wanted to know.

 However the text used for the 'Content' heading is bold, and arranged in a unique way. This is to instantly explain that this page is going to give an idea of what this magazine is about, and it is unlike any other kind of music magazine.

The logo on this page is relativly small., this is again to ensure that full focus is on the artist in the image. It also tells the readers that the magazine doesn't give itself much importance, but only wants them to concentrate on the stars that are featured.

Overall this contents page gives its target audience an impression that this magazine is fully focused on the artists that it features and that they can expect to find a lot of discussion about wealth and success. As these are themes that are evident in hop-hop music it will appeal to people that enjoy this genre of music.

Contents Research: NME

This contents page for the Indie/Rock magazine NME shares several similarities in the formatting with that of Q magazine. The house style is similar using black, red and white lettering, this shows that these colours are conventional in indie/rock magazines as they are bold but simple.

However in NME the logo is the biggest peice of text on the page, this is so that the reader has a constant reminder that they can only get these articles in NME. Therefore cementing the brand and creating a sense of exclusivity.

Another formatting technique that the two magazines have in common is that the artcles have been grouped into clear categories. This means that audience can quickly find the sections of the magazine that most interest them. Furthermore it shows the variety that the magazine offers, it doesn't just show interviews it also givs news and reviews and information on live shows. It is important for this magazine to display a variety right on the contents page, as this is the page that determines a purchase. If it doesn't appear to offer a lot of interesting information the consumer will put it back.

This magazine gives an extensive band index spanning the whole left side of the page, which Q magazine does not give. This is a great technique of showing that the magazine features a wide range of indie/rock artists, and will draw in the target audience of listeners of indie/rock music as they can instantly identify there favorite bands.

The use of a short article on the well known indie band Kasabian gives the audience an insight into what they can expect in the rest of the magazine, making them want to read on. Plus it uses a famous artist to directly appeal to and construct its target audience, as it alines itself with the fans of this band, sending a clear message about the genre it favours. To add the image used creates a feeling among the readers of being involved in the music. This is from the fact that it is taken from the midst of the audience at the gig, looking up at the band. With this image the magazine tells it's readers that they are getting the chance to experience gigs first hand without needing to buy a ticket themselves. They are being offered exclusive information, something that anyone interested in live indie music would throughly appreciate.

Furthermore a big percentage of the page is devoted to giving information on subscriptions. This is because the magazine publishers want people to become frequent readers so they can sell copies all year round. To make this seem appealing they have offered a discount of £45 which seems to the readers like a generous amount. They have also provided examples of other magazine covers to show what subscribers can expect. They have also made it very easy to opt into, simply by call or online this is so that people can start recieving their magazines as soon as possible.

Lastly the magazine makes good use of signs and signifiers to encouge people to read on. The use of a big red arrow, instantly signifies to general society  'go this way' or 'what you want is in this direction' so when its placed in a music magazine it tells readers that information they will find useful can be found with in the magazine. Therefore making them want to buy the magazine to read on and find out more.

In conclusion of the two indie magazine contents pages that I have looked at, I prefer the formatting of NME. This is due to the fact that it encapsulates several features of the entire magazine clearly and effectivly on this page. The audience can take one look at this and see that a wide range of information is available and that it focuses solely on indie/rock music. This research has given me some positive ideas on how I would like to present the contents page of my own magazine However I will continue to research so that I can have a broad understanding of what makes an effective contents page.