Investigating a niche magazine

The Niche Market

A lot of genres are split into sub genres (and sub-sub genres etc) each sub genre becomes more directed at the niche market, this then means that sales and income decrease. A niche magazine is a magazine that has a small audience due to its content being specific topics.

The Pros of a niche magazine:

• Easier to target at specific audiences.
• More ability to be creative.
• More loyal customers, as they are more likely to subscribe for long periods of time.
• Genuine interes from customers.
  

The Cons of a niche magazine:

• Less income due to small audience of the magazine.
• Less reputation.
• Cheaper for advertisers and so less profit is made.

Metal Forces

Metal forces is an example of a niche magazine, it was first published in 1983, its main promotion was the metal and rock genre, The magazine used unsigned and therefore unknown bands for the front cover. However in doing this the bands reputation heightened and some even went on to get signed and secure record deals.  This magazine was the first to discuss thrash metal and death metal. Thrash and death metal is a sub genre of rock music.

Metal Forces has a website and is a modern design unlike the magazine, however its main focus is still on previous bands  from the 80's and so still gives the idea that the target audience is very niche.

Why might sales be decreasing?

ABC- Audit Bureau Circulation

The main reason for a decrease in sales in magazines is the increase in internet circulation, this means that less hard copies of magazines are being purchased. Some examples of magazines sales that have decreased are 'OK' magazine which decreased by 13.9%, 'HELLO' magazine which decreased by 8% and 'KERRANG' which decreased by 2.1%. Another reason that sales have gone down may be because of the country's recession, and so less people are able to afford the magazines.

According to ABC the top selling magazines are Tescos and Asda, this is because it appeals to a massive audience as many people go to these supermarkets and it is an essential in peoples lives, the magazines are also situated at the till and so this adds to the sale

Broadcast V Narrowcast

There are two types of target audiences, they are a massmarket which is broadcast and a niche market which is narrowcast. Broadcast means that there is a mass target audience and so appeals so a wide variety of people. Whereas Narrowcast is where something is very specific and focasus on a certain aspect meaing that there target audience is specific and therfore smaller than broadcast.

Research Methods

Primary
This method consists of research that has been done by yourself, this way individual results are gathered. Such as questionnaires. This method is effective as the results collected are appropriate for the specific time and place, however using the primary method is very time consuming and can cost a lot of money.

Secondary
This involves using others research in order to help and aid your own, this involves things such as websites and other blogs. The good thing about this method is that is cost effective, on the other hand you may not be able to gather all the information that is needed.

Qualitative
Qualitative method is where you are in a small group of people who also have strong views and opinions on the subject in hand, for example in my case a focus group containing pop rock fans. Using this method can help you gain a broad understanding of the topic being discussed, though it is difficult to avoid biased views from the researcher.

Quantitative
This method is where you collect an in depth overall view on the subject matter, this way you are also able to identify a trend in the results. This method helps the researcher gain accurate results, however if using questionnaires this mean that the results do not contain explanations and are instead statistics.

Bricolage

Bricolage= Something put together using tools that are available. This includes instruments such as Irish spoons, Comb and wax paper and largophone. In the music industry bricolage is well known for mixing two genres together.

An example of this is the song Walk this way by Aerosmith and Run DMC, this song was originally sung by Aerosmith alone and was considered a heavy-metal song. In the 1980's it was re-released with the rappers Run DMC. The song then consisted of both artists genres, them being heavy rock and hip-hop, they composed the song with rapping and scratching through a heavy rock beat, this song made a new sub-genre rap-rock.

History of Music Magazines

Rolling Stone magazine

Even though rolling Stone is not a rock magazine it follows most of the tropes of a typical rock magazine, first of all the colour scheme used is not bright and not a lot of colours are actually used, there are three main colours used which are red, blue and black, from other rock magazines and magazines in general three colours are nearly always used. The limited colours make it seem more professional as it is not busy or overcrowded instead a simple layout is used. Other than the masthead the font is simple which can represent the fashion trope of rock, rock fashion is considered quite simple and casual much like the font used on the magazine. The main image covers part of the masthead and makes it look distorted, this is seen as going against magazine conventions however a distorted mast is a typical convention of rock magazines. Amy Winehouse is the dominant aspect of this cover and is a well known icon, the way she looks in this image gives a 'rock' or rebellious' impression to the reader, for example her tattoos are on show, lack long hair and casual clothing all of these are tropes of a typical rock magazine. The main subtitles that catch the readers eye on this cover is  'The Diva & Her Demons Amy Winehouse' this headline explains the main image. Another headline that catches your eye is 'Summer Tours' this explains what is also inside the magazine. In my opinion this magazine follows a lot of the conventions of magazines however the cover does not give much away about what is inside which my mean the target audience may not be as interested.

Brief History of the magazine

This magazine is an American magazine, published every two weeks. It was founded in 1967 in San Francisco by Jann Wenner and Ralf J. Gleason. In the 1970's Rolling Stone was about politics, however in the 1990's it changed its direction and focused more on television, music and film in order to appeal to the younger generation. There was criticism when the the magazine started to write about the media as it was claimed to be emphasising style over substance. The first ever issue was released on November 9, 1967.

Typical content

Nowadays the magazine has a variation of the music, television and film industry and in-depth political stories.

• Reviews-on music, films and albums
• Photos
• New Movies and TV
• Music
• Political stories
• The Charts

Typical reader?

This magazine is mostly aimed at the more mature audience such as late teens and adults due to the nature of the magazine as it contains information about music and music from years ago that the older people would recognise, also the political content would not appeal to a younger audience.

Magazine house styles?

A house style is where a magazine is repetitive with its structure, for example the same font, colours and logo's are the same with every issue, This is a typical convention of a magazine cover, this way the magazine gets a distinguished and unique look, and so the reader can easily recognise the magazine.

Rolling Stone House style:

• Same font used every time for masthead.
• The colour scheme is usually made up of three main colours, The colours for the subheadings are usually not that bright, however the masthead is, and so this makes it stand out and appeal to the readers.
• Looking at a lot of Rolling Stone magazines it seems that the image one front is usually just one person and then somewhere on the magazine that persons name is in a big font which can sometimes be as big as the masthead.
• The models on the front are very rarely smiling and instead look very serious as the the stories that o with them are mainly 'sob stories' or 'life stories'
• The models used are always very well known and important.
• The masthead is always in the same position however sometimes it is behind the main image which makes it distorted or in front of the image. 

Smash Hits!

The magazine cover has typical conventions of a pop magazine, Firstly the colours used are very childish, as they are bright, and not considered sophisticated. The Cover is also very compact and busy, there may be one main image but there are smaller images which fit with the subtitles.

Brief history of the magazine

This magazine has been running since 1978 and was founded by Nick Logan. To begin with it was issued monthly but because of its popularity it began to be issued fortnightly. Every magazine has a major selling point and in its early days smash hits was Top 20 song lyrics. The magazine was particularly popular in the 1980's which helped, launch careers of journalists who went on to produce and edit other major magazines such as Q, Heat, Mojo and Word.

Typical content

• Free gifts-such as posters
• Battle of the bands
• Information and gossip on celebrities
• New artists

 Typical reader?

 This magazine is aimed mostly at 8-16 year olds. This magazine is mainly a pop magazine and so does not appeal to all of the demographic, and because of the age range there is going to be a secondary reader which will be the parents as they will want to know what the magazine contains.

Magazine house styles?

Smashhits! house styles are:

• Colourful writing which is usually it capitals making it stand out. Also neon colours are used often.
• Large image
• Same font for masthead
• Main image is usually current and very popular pop artists.
• A lot of Colours are used and do not stick to the typical convention of magazines which is usually three colours.
• The colours used are considered very immature and young (pink, yellow, blue, green) and so this means that the magazine will appeal more to a younger demographic and not particularly be considered to have a mature target audience.
• The cover is usually very busy and contains other images with subheadings.

Who produces and distributes the magazine?

EMAP produced and distributed the magazine fortnightly

 

Alternative Rock Brain Storm

Titles
Rock the Boat
Six Strings
Rock with You
Level Rock

Camera Shots
Low angle-to show dominance and power to link to the genre
Side angle
High angle shot

Colours
Red black and white
Grey Red and white
Black and white

Subtitle
The word is on your lips, say the word

Sell lines
New artists
Competition
Interview with...

For my magazine i have decided to focus on Alternative Rock, This is because Rock is a broadcast genre and so it is easier to focus on one sub-genre, in my case alternative rock, Also there were various obstacle with doing just rock because, there are not many rock artists around nowadays and so there are not many artists that you can use to help with the magazine and base a style on. Alternative rock is very similar to indie rock and so i will doing a mixture of the two. There are many Alternative/Indie rock artists such as:

• Coldplay
• Arctic Monkeys
• Oasis
• Kaiser Chiefs
• Kasabian
• Kings of Leon
• Foo Fighters
• Florence and the Machine

Alternative rock artists, have a typical rock style, and rock lyrics, however there songs are not considered typical rock, as the beat and rhythm is very different, and more like indie rock.

Alternative rock is a small sub-genre but has had dominant years within the music industry.

The magazine sin has features Coldplay on it's cover. There is a plain background which makes them stand out. The colours of the cover are pink, blue, yellow and red and white these colours are also on the main band members arm and so the picture compliments and fits in with the colour scheme used which is good as then everything seems to link in with each other.However even though many colours are used the magazine is still not colourful as the main colour used is white and the band are dressed in dark colours which, black and white with a hint of colour is the usual convention for rock and this magazine does just that. The way the band stands is very powerful, this links to the music as alternative rock is known to be a powerful genre with lyrics and sound, another convention is the fact that none of them are smiling, instead they look ''moody'' which is a very important trope when it comes to rock. The Masthead is distorted by the main image which is a typical convention of rock. the main subtitle that catches the readers eye is ''Viva Coldplay'' this then informs the reader that Coldplay information is included in the magazine. 

This magazine is a very good example of rock as it holds many conventions of rock. One main one being the people (in this case Kings Of Leon) look as thought they are breaking through glass, this action it considered very rebellious and  which many people associated with the genre rock. On this magazine cover there are not many subheadings, which is unusual for a cover as most put more subheadings on the cover in order to entice the reader into buying the magazine. The title that catches your eye the most is ''Kings of Leon Break through'' this then explains the picture as they are breaking through a sheet of glass, and so the text links with the main image.

Analysing Double Page Spread

The main story in this magazine is about Florence and the Machine and so is the main article which makes 3 double spreads. The pictures used are consistant in a way that the Forence is wearing the same make up, clothes and has the same hair style in all photos. in the top two photos shadowing is used which disorientates the main image, this could symbolise dark and depressing times which reflect the main article a the title of theis is ''Florence and the Machine a Woman on the Edge''. Alot of large lettering is used to bring the readers attention to the text, making them wan to read on, the lettering is continued throughout the double page spreads and the magazine.

The Pictures take up a whole page on the double page spread and so attention is drawn to it. doing this minimalises the writing on each page and so in reality at one double page spread at a time, the reading material doe not look that much because a whole page is taken up by the picture, this in turn makes the reader want to read it because the writing is split up into sections and so does ot look as much as what it really is. With each picture a different shot is used 1 is the same as the cover to let the reader know that this is the main story of the magazine, another is half her face as the other half is shadowed and lastly one is threee consecutive long shot pictures that are also shadowed, this gives the reader a variety and something else to look at, that can entise them.

Magazine deconstruction

Title

• The title of the magazine: Q
• Why is it called that?: Originally it was meant to be named Cue, to represent cueing a record, ready to play however this was also the word for a snooker cue and so it was decided to use the letter instead of the word to avoid misunderstanding of the magazines nature. Founders of the magazine also thought that a single letter magazine title should be more prominent on a magazine and news stand
• What connotations do they have?: The red can be a connotation of passion, anger, love, which are typical connotations of rock music. 

Readership

• Audience: It is targeting a more mature audience such as late teens and adults as the magazine contains information on present artists but also older artists that the older generation would be more familiar with and find more interest in.
• How do you know this: One of the subtitles says ''Hearn Hooker's & Hair Metal Motley Crue & The Bands That Won't Die'' This shows that the magazine contains articles and information about bands in the past and it say 'Bands that Won't Die' and so only a mature audience would be interested.
• How does the reader interact with the magazine?:One subtitle says 'Skrillex dance genius or noisy git?'' this is a rhetorical question, but his also involves the reader in the magazine as it acts as though it is asking the reader the question.

Cover 

• Analysis of the Images on the cover: There is one main image on this magazine which is Florence and the machine and it covers the entire page and so shows that she is dominant in the magazine as she is the main story. Florence and the machine is not smiling and instead her expression is serious and mysterious, posing and not smiling is usually associated with it the genre rock as a whole and so this follows the typical convention of Rock stars being 'moody'. Her facial expression also goes with the subtitle above her ''I feel so alone, Florence a woman on the edge'' a serious facial expression to match a serious topic.
• What do they tell us about the target audience?: It tells us that it is supposed to appeal to a mature target audience as a younger audience would be more drawn to images of smiley, colourful pictures, which is opposite of the one used on this cover.
• What else appears on the cover?: As well as the main image, there are sub titles listed at the sides to show the reader what is inside the magazine. There is also a blue circle stating that there is a new column inside which will grab the readers attention, as there is something new and exciting within the magazine.
• Explain why particular typefaces, type of graphics, colours and other notable stylistic features are used: A bold font is used all over the cover, which reflects the genre rock, The colour of the writing is consistent and white. However Blue is also used d is a small fraction of the cover, however the blue on the sticker like icon matches Florence and the machine's eye shadow.
• Does the cover look similar to other magazine covers? if so why? if not, how does it look different?: Some aspects of this magazine looks similar to some magazines, for example the title position is in the corner, this position is also seen on other magazines such as NME, SPIN and CLASH. Also many magazine covers main picture has a blank background, usually it is white. Another consistency is the colour scheme, most magazines nowadays use three-way colour scheme on the front cover, in this case it is black, white and blue. This cover does have some differences as well, most magazine covers seem to have there masthead distorted by the main image however this masthead is actually distorting the main image instead.

Presentation 

• Does it look cheap or expensive?: It looks expensive, as the photo quality is very good, the pages are glossy rather than paper, that some magazines use and overall it looks like a professional magazine.
• How does it compare with other similar magazines?: It is very different compared to another music magazine such as 'SmashHits!', which uses more immature colours and pictures, which in some cases make it look less expensive, whereas this magazine gives of a more Rock and mature feel.

Mode Of Address

• How does it address it's readers?: The mode of address used in this magazine is informal, as it uses swear words for example the quote "And this ones not a bastard'' this is a correct mode of address for a rock magazine as the language used in the songs are well known for there crude language and so i think that this fits perfectly with the genre.using this mode of address means that the reader can develop a relationship with the writer and trust what is being said in the magazine.
• How and when are readers allowed to address the magazine?: The readers are allowed to address the magazine in mainly the mail part of the magazine, this where readers are able to write in and tell the magazine what they think of the magazine and what they would like to be included.Readers are also able to interact with the magazine through facebook, twitter and email, this way they are able to interact with it simple and quickly.
• What type of articles/Features does it contain?: The main article of this magazine is Florence and the Machine's story, readers would like this as it gives them an insight to celebrities life. There are many other articles features, those being some mentioned on the cover above and others, such as new artists, Brit awards, quizzes, pictures from recent 'Gigs', top 50 tracks to download this month and music/artists reviews.

Advertising

• What are the main types of products being advertised?: Advertising is a very important part of any magazine. As this is a mature music magazine the advertisements must appeal to the target audience. This magazine contains mainly advertisements about new albums that link to the genre being portrayed. They also advertise upcoming concerts and tours, these advertisements can appeal to a wide audience as rock is a broad genre and consists of a lot of different sub genres and a lot of different artists. Fashion styles are also partly advertised in the magazine.
• Who are they aimed are?: The advertisements are aimed at late teens and early adult as the albums on sale are music that is mature and younger people would not find interesting.
• What percentage of the overall magazine is taken up with advertisements?: 22/146 page are advertisements.

Publication

• Who publishes the magazine?: The magazine is published by Bauer media group,It was founded in 1875 by the Bauer family, is a German company that operates in 15 countries worldwide.
• What other magazines (if any) does it publish?: As well as Q magazine they also publish 'Kerrang' which is another music magazine and is very well known and successful. Other than music magazines they publish 'Bella', 'Take a Break', 'Thats Life', 'TV choice', 'Total TV Guide', as well as a number of puzzle magazines.
• How much does the magazine cost?: £3.99
• How often is it published?: It is publishes monthly.
•  What is it's circulation/readership?: Worldwide circulation of Bauers media group's magazine title amounts to 38 million magazines a week.

Ray Gun Magazine

This magazine is a good example of one that challenges the conventions of music magazines and yet they are still as successful as ones that follow the main tropes.

Ray Gun was a rock and roll magazine in America. The  founder was very interested in making the magazine design that goes against the 'norm'. The designs on his magazine were considered chaotic, abstract but very distinctive and unique.

Ray Gun was not only noticeable for its cover, it also differed form other magazines due to its content, as it usually contained musical icons that were typically ahead of curve meaning they were on there covers before they became considerably well known and famous, such as Eminem, Bjork, Radiohead and Beck.

These aspects of the magazine shows that it did not follow the tropes of music magazines and he did not have a certain style, in structure or topic, because most of his issues were different. The font always changed, the masthead font and style differed from issue to issue, whereas in normal magazines the masthead is kept the same each time, magazines such as Q, Kerrang and Smash hits.

The images on the front are completely different to ones used normally, some were upside down, they were always very busy, with the masthead being in different places and writing across the image.

On one hand it is a good idea to go against all conventions of magazines, as i makes it stand out and seem unique which can encourage more people to buy it as it grabs the readers attention and they become intrigued. However it could affect sales as the overall look of the magazine does not look professional.

This magazine is no longer running, this could be because it was too different and people simply did not understand it, however it shows that a magazine can be different and successful, it does not always have to follow the conventions

Magazine Draft Number 1

Plan of my Magazine


The main target audience for a rock magazine is people with more mature taste 16+, this is mostly because of the content of rock music as it is mostly about rebellion, Rock music is not as popular anymore and so older people are going to be the ones who remember it the most, acting as a memory magazine. Also teenagers have a disposable income form part time jobs and pocket money from parents.


Male Bands are dominant with rock music and what we usually associate with the genre, even though there are Female rock artists, they tend not to be as popular and successful as the male artists.


The main image is going to dominate to cover with one image, this way the cover is not overcrowded and busy, yet it still looks like there is a lot to read in the magazine.


Upcoming tours, gigs interviews and celebrity news, will be be included in the sell lines (cover titles) in order to show the reader what is inside and to appeal to them and persuade them to buy the magazine, i would also include a free bee on the magazine, to give them another reason to invest in the magazine. The free bee could range from a music store voucher to a poster.


I would want my magazine to appeal to a mature audience such as late teens and adults, as my magazine will contain information on rock artists not only from the present but also form the past, and this means that older people will be familiar with the older artists, which can appeal more to their generation. However i will also contain some of information of present artists in order to widen my audience.

Magazine Terminology

Mast Head
Cover Lines
Main Cover Line
Left Third
Bar Code
Price
Main Image

The Four F's

Magazines are often criticised if they do not follow these rules, as they are the main conventions of a magazine and so i will be using these elements when it comes to creating my own magazine in order to make it look professional.


Frame- This is the margins and gutters for printing.

Function- What the magazines objections are, such as informing the readers about tour dates, upcoming bands and festivals.

Formula- The formula is elements that make up a magazine, such as the amount of articles included and types of photographs.

Format- The presentation of the magazine, eg.colours, fonts.

The Subgenre's of Rock Music

Rock and Roll


Rock and Roll originated in America in the 1940's. The origins are Rhythm and Blues, Gospel music Country and Western.
Some rock and Roll artists are:

• Elvis Presley
• Little Richard
• Buddy Holly

Rock and roll music died down at the end of the 1950's. However after this, something that the US called 'The British Invasion' occurred, the first British rock and roll hit was 'Move it' by cliff Richard this hit ushered in the sound of British rock. Even though Rock n Roll was fading into light pop and ballads British rock acts were becoming more successful, They were starting to play with intensity found in White American Acts.

 The British Invasion

 In the early 1960's, the British rock scene had begun with groups called 'Beat groups' such as:

• The Beatles
• Freddie and the Dreamers
• The Hollies

These bands were from Manchester and were influenced heavily by soul, rhythm, blues and surf music. There music was usually considered bouncy and irresistible melodies. Where as groups from London such as the 'Rolling stones' were more influenced by rhythm and blues and unlike beat bands they were less sexually innocent and much more aggressive songs. These two tendencies tended to crossover and in 1963 led by The Beatles beat bands had begun national success in Britain which was soon followed by rhythm and blues artists. In 1964 the Beatles became successful in the USA and went on to become the biggest selling rock band of all time, and many British bands followed in the charts. British Artists became dominant in the music industry i the UK and USA with bands such as:

• The Kinks
• The Rolling Stones
• Freddie and the dreamers

Garage Rock

This type of rock originated in the mid-1960's in North America, and was mostly influenced by surf rock, it is well known to be amateur as it was rehearsed in a garage of a suburban home, Garage rock songs are usually about traumas of school, the lyrics used are shouted and so were very aggressive. example bands of garage rock:

• The Trashman
• Paul revere and the Raiders
• The Kingsman

Pop Rock

Pop rock is described as being and upbeat version of rock,, pop and rock music have been known to be similar in lyrics, instrumental and sound. Pop Rock music mixes pops light lyrics with rock instrumentals, some example of pop rock artists are:

• Elton John
• Paul McCartney
• The Everly Brothers

Blues Rock


This sub genre came into existence in the 1950's and got it's Inspiration from the American Blues and acoustic. The music of this genre is loud and is centred mainly around the electrics guitar, It is music that combines blues standards with rock instrumental. some examples of blues rock bands are:

• The J.Geils Band
• Jimmy Hendrix
• Johnny Winter

Folk Rock

In the 1960's we saw folk rock become popular mainly in America, folk rock is made with a   combination of a folk song with rock instrumental, with instruments such as drums and guitars, some folk rock artists are:

• The Beatles-'I'm a Loser'
• The Byrd's

The songs produced were thought to have been influenced by Bob Dylan's earlier records of folk music. In 1967 folk-rock reached its peak before artists began to move on in different musical directions such as country rock.


Jazz rock

Jazz rock came into existence in the late 1960's, which was influenced by blues-rock and psychedelic rock. Jazz rock mixes the power of rock music with the complexity elements of jazz. Many artists of Jazz rock had emerged from British jazz. Some Jazz rock artists:

• Steely Dan
• The Free Spirits
• Soft Machine

Glam rock

This sub genre emerged in the late 1960's, Glam rock is mainly associated with fashion such as Hollywood glam, pinup sex appeal, symbolist styles and many more, the main look of glam rock is 'outrageous', not just in clothes styles, but also make up and hairstyles. It is classed as a sub genre because of the fashion style used, as rock bands began to use this style and so became a single sub genre. The glam style was used by artists such as:

• Elton John
• Kiss
• Queen
• Rod Stewart

Punk rock

Punk rock originated in the early 1970's n the US and UK, the music is fast and hard-edged, the songs made were usually short with political lyrics. Most punk-rock bands recorded and distributed there own sings.

• The Clash
• The Sex Pistols
• Patti Smith

Punk became very popular in the UK, and so a punk subculture came into existence where songs would express rebellious attitudes with lyrics, clothing and ideologies.

Heartland rock

Heartland rock developed in the 1970's and was a straight forward style of music and sings about lives of ordinary people, its main influences were folk, country and rock and roll

• Bruce Springsteen
• Kid Rock
• Tom Petty

Indie rock

In the 1980's indie rock developed in the USA and UK, it was originally used to describe record labels. In the 2000's many indie artists began to become successful in the music industry, Indie rock is very popular at the moment with artists such as:

• Ed Sheeran
• Ellie Goulding
• The Script
• Snow Patrol
• The Kooks

Alternative Rock

Alternative rock is a term to describe underground music. In the 1980's alternative rock artists received little attention. Alternative rock has no actual musical style, however it has sometimes been associated mainly with guitars and power chords. The lyrics of alternative rock tend to address social concern, drug use and depression. Some alternative rock artists are:

• Coldplay
• Sex Pistols
• Red Hot Chilli Peppers
• Foo Fighters
• Radiohead

My Chosen Genre

For my main task I have chosen to do the genre Rock for my music magazine. I have chosen this genre as it is based upon my own taste of music.


Rock music developed during the late 1960' in the U.K and U.S.A. By the late 1960's sub genres of rock had emerged; blue rock, folk rock, country rock, jazz rock fusion, glam rock, punk rock and many others.
Very popular Rock bands and singers were The Rollings Stones, the Beatles and ACDC. These days there are not many rock artists around as the main genre is pop and R&B, but the most popular rock artists nowadays are Greenday, Pink and Kings of Leon. the genre of rock has a wide range of types of rock music and so have a broad range to work with when it comes to my magazine.

One popular magazine is Q.

This magazine is a perfect example for the rock genre as it uses a black and white with red colour scheme. The photo gives of a 'sexy' yet scary and powerful feel which is an important aspect that i should consider if i were to include Women on my magazine this will then appeal more to the male population. The  Masthead is large and so attention is drawn to it, also the subheadings are scattered around the page detailing what can be found inside the magazine. The subtitles that really catch the readers eye is '3 words Cheryl Cole Rocks' the font gets bigger and so the main word you are drawn to is Rocks, which is good as it supports the image and genre that Cheryl Cole is portraying.

Another magazine that is a great example of a rock magazine is Kerrang. Here the Girl in the picture is using a hand gesture that represent rebellion, which is very important in rock music, this magazine follows a lot of the conventions of a music magazine, for example the masthead is distorted by the image and the subheadings explain what is inside, along with it there are pictures, there is also a free bee inside, this is a tool used to entice readers into buying the magazine.

The colour scheme used here is similar to the magazine above as the scheme is black and white, however this magazine has orange added to it, this colour scheme is most probably continued inside.

To-Do list

• Talk about a music magazine and deconstruct it.
• Brainstorm on magazine ideas e.g titles and bands.

Analysis of Music Genres

Pop Music

Pop is an abbreviation of the word 'popular', the reason for this is that it has popular appeal to a wide range audience.

Pop music has many tropes such as:

• Alot of dancing
• Songs about romance
• Bright
• Fashionable
• Smiling

These are tropes which have become so popular and common they are now considered conventions of the pop genre. Pop music is very popular amoungst teenagers, which is good for the industry as teens have part time jobs or get given pocket money and so therefore they are responsible for a large amunt of the pop music income.The memes of pop is the fashion side of at for example the dramatic outfits and music vieos that fit the lyrics of the song itself.

As you can see this image follows the convention as it is colourful and the flowers represent love and romance.

Rock Music

Rock music developed during the 1960's in the United Kingdom and United States. The roots of Rock music is mostly rhythm and blues an country music.
This genre has a very wide range of categories that fall under this genre such as british rock and punk-rock.

The tropes of Rock:

• Playing guitar
• Usually male artists
• Black and white clothes
• Casual clothes
• Fast paced
• Leather Jackets
• Rebellion

The Beatles and The Rolling Stones are some of the bands that can pose a conventions for the Rock genre. Rock is classed as a very theatrical and artistic genre which can express through the heavy use of guitars and drums.

This Album cover is a good example of Rock music, cold and 'dull' colours have been used to give a casual look to it, the image has a lot of instruments such as guitars and a drum kit. The clothes of the band members also support the conventions of rock ad roll as they are very casual and the man at the front of the image is wearing a leather jacket which is heavily associated with 'Rock',

Heavy Metal Music

Heavy metal developed in the late 1960's mostly in the midlands of the U.K and America. Heavy metal music is mostly associated with masculinity and machismo,


The tropes of Heavy Metal:

• Loud
• Guitars
• Drums
• Vigorous vocals
• Dressed in black (with chains, studs, skulls, leather, crosses)
• Long hair
• Makeup
• Anger

These tropes are now considered the conventions of heavy metal music and what we expect to see when it comes to this genre. This genre is also associated with some stereotypes such as Gothic or emo. The outfits for this genre is very dramatic but does not usually use bright colours, this fashion trope has also inspired the parts of stereotypes mostly Gothic.

The Band Kiss is a very good example of heavy metal as you can see through the appearance that they are expressing masculinity through the costumes as it looks quite scary and strong. Apart from one of the band members which has makeup to look like a cat, however he is still dressed in the leather so masculinity is still shown. The hand gestures are also relevant as the person at the front is making the classic signal associated with heavy metal, he is very iconic for the genre heavy metal as his make-up is a symbol for Satan, and suits very well with the tropes of heavy metal.