NME MAGAZINE ANALYSIS

What is NME magazine?

NME (new musical express) is a weekly British music magazine featuring genres such as rock, alternative and indie music. NME are proud of their colourful history and of their unique inside information. They regularly give their readers exclusive contents and the latest news from the world of music. Their articles are informing as they tell their readers new album releases, tour dates, celebrity interviews, up and coming artists and more. The magazine does not gossip about celebrities, instead they give factual information about them.

I have chosen to analyse particularly an NME magazine as their content includes features about the music genre I want to base my own music magazine on, indie rock. 

Front Cover

Overall NME follows the standard conventions of a magazine front cover. The masthead is positioned at the top of the page meaning it follows the Z theory. It is in a bold sans-serif font meaning it is very clear and easy to read from a distance therefore the customer will recognize on the shop shelf. The cover lines are also brightly coloured so that stand out against the harsh black in the main image. The coloured text boxes and blue underlines are a very effective and clever way of emphasizing the text. An excessive amount of cover lines is not used which makes the cover look not overcrowded and more visually pleasing. The main image completely fills the page where the model is making eye contact with the reader, catching their attention. The cover lines have been cut into different blocks of bold colours which make the cover look modern and edgy. The colour scheme has been well designed as only three colours have been which is standard for a front cover. The red is immensely dominating against the black and white used making the masthead and cover lines especially projectile. In addition to this, the correct amount of different fonts are used which complement each other instead of clashing. The basic conventions such as barcode, price and date are situated in a suitable place of the correct size in the bottom right hand corner. These conventions are key as they inform the reader. The main image of Liam Gallagher is very effective and is easily connected to the music genre he is representing. He looks very rock 'n' roll and cool as he casually takes off his sunglasses. The pose is very simple and effortless.

However this front cover does have some faults. The model should be positioned in the center of the page which would make it easier to position the cover lines around the model. I think the composition of the model is very poor as it doesn't advertise the famous artist very effectively. The cover lines overlap over the main image instead of fitting the shape of it which can make the magazine look messy. If the model was positioned in the center of the frame and page then it would make it easier to position cover lines around the image making the left and right third even. This suggests the editor has not stuck to the standard framing of a magazine front cover. There are many sparse areas of the page (bottom left hand corner) which look very empty and wasted. This makes the mise en scene of the front cover poor as I think the page is not very well organised. The cover line 'FREE POSTERS' should be styled to look more like a puff meaning it should stand out more in bright coloured shape or different font to attract the reader’s attention. The masthead also overlaps over the model's head making it very blocky and harsh.

Contents Page

Overall this contents page is very well organised and structured as the text is sectioned into three clear columns. The layout of the page is very good and easy to read making it convenient for the reader to find the article they want to read. The index of bands on the right hand side makes it simple for music fans to find their artist they are interested in especially as the list is in alphabetical order. The text has been sectioned under sub headings such as 'regulars' or 'features' which are larger than the main body text so that they stand out more. They are also in coloured black text boxes making the words project off the page against the plain background. The NME logo is positioned at the top of the page following the Z theory and reinforcing the compnay the magazine is made from. Common conventions such as the date is used to show when the magazine was published. The colour scheme distinctly flows from the front colours as colours such as white, black and red are used again. Overall the contents page is very simply designed and fulfills its purpose. The page looks very retro and cool fittting with the main image on the front cover.

This contents page does not follow the convention that the page sjould include 50% images and 50% text. There is only one small image randomly placed near the bottom of page that doesn't clearly relate to a particular article. No social network information or subscription offers are advertised which is usually positioned here. The page overall doesn't look like piece of art or well designed, instead it looks dated making modern audiences uninterested. The page numbers are not obvious as they are not positioned in the standard space at the bottom of the page. This could confuse new readers making them not want to buy the product again. The contents page should flow after the front cover which is not expressed here. The design of the contents page is very different front the cover as the cover look modern and the contents looks dated. This means the theme of the product is not consitent.

Double Page Spread

This is a good double page spread as it has been well designed making it a piece of artwork. It continues the style of the front cover as the same star image, colour scheme and typography is used. The main image presented on the front cover of Liam Gallagher mid taking off his sunglasses connotes he is taking odd his protective shield and opening up to NME's audience. On the double page spread Gallagher has been composed directly facing the camera emotionless, wearing the common prop of sunglasses.  This connotes that the reader must read the article in order information that is presented on the opposite page. The monochrome colour scheme makes the spread look old giving a vintage sense, fitting in with the star image of an older indie artist. Similar to the front cover and contents page there are random bursts of colour of colour adding some modern touches, this is more apparent on the following pages. 'Liam's Lost Weekend' stands out to the reader as it is in a bold black text box projecting the text off the page, this effect is a house style of NME. By Gallagher wearing the large sunglasses blocking his vision and avoiding any eye contact, it suggests why his weekend was 'lost' as he is lost. The use of the convention of a drop cap indicates the reader to where they should start to read the article. The layout of the text in columns makes the page look consistent and organised. The names mentioned in the kicker/sub title have been underlines meaning they are of some important significance.

It could be argued that this piece of artwork has not been successfully created into a double page spread as the two pages look very separate. There is only one main image on one page and then just text on the other meaning the conventions have not been spread over two pages. Particularly, on the second page there is lot of blank space making the page look empty and therefore not attractive. In addition to this the page looks dated reflected from the dull colour scheme resulting in the reader easily flicking past the pages as their attention has not been grabbed. The dated look would not appeal to NME's prime target audience as young people want bright colours and modern artists.