Textual Analysis - Front Cover 2

2. NME Magazine

The masthead shows the magazine name in bold, red and capital letters. The dateline is underneath the masthead with the price because the cover isn't very wordy, it’s just the picture with the main coverline and 2 others. The main image covers the whole front cover and it’s of a new band called “Palma Violets”. Not many people would have heard of them but they would be iconic now, since they are on the front of a popular magazine. Model credit is in front of the image as the main coverline. There are 2 coverlines to the right of the main to show simplicity which will draw the readers in more. The main coverline is large with slang, “Comin’ Up”, and puff, “Best new band in Britain”, this will make the reader want to get to this story to see if what they are saying is correct. The “NM” of “NME” is shown in the left third which makes it obvious that the magazine is “NME” as it is an iconic symbol. The barcode is standard but had date, price and website too. The people on the cover look very rebellious and look like they’re in a small flat which suggests uniqueness, because not many people have a gig in a flat. The magazine has done this because they are trying to promote them, as people like uniqueness. The target audience of this magazine are for people who enjoy all kinds of rock music but are a bit older than “Kerrang” readers as it is more like a newspaper inside. The clothes the band is wearing are quite smart but the clothing is undone, which suggests that they are not conforming to conventions which the target audience would like. The language used is very informal, for example “Comin’ Up” is a slang term so therefore the magazine is speaking to the audience very informally. The cover image is a medium-shot of a couple members of the band playing their gig. The picture covers the whole magazine, this means that the magazine is trying to show the how big this band can become and also, this magazine’s front covers are usually like this. Overall, the style is very “Rock n’ Roll” which makes the magazine draw in a specific target audience as it appeal’s to their style of music.