My project is now complete This is my front cover, my contents page and my double page article for my music magazine. They all went really well, my Font cover I'm really happy with i especially enjoy the title. My contents page and article are both equally as strong but if i could change anything i would find a way of not having a white border around the edge of my article.I will write a more detailed evaluation after Easter.

These are some more photos of the gig i went to last Sunday, These are of he headlining band 'Glasvagas' these are the most famous band of the lot and would be ideal for the front cover of my music magazine as they are an actual band and I took the photos myself. Some of the photos were blurred or fuzzy so i deleted them and these are the good ones. I am going to edit them in photo shop and pick the best one for the front cover.

These are another set of photos i took at a gig on the 15th of February, at the O2 academy in Bristol. This set of photos are of a band called 'Friendly Fires' some of these photos were blurred so i deleted them, these are the ones that were acceptable. I will use these for my student magazine.

These are some photos i took at a gig on the 15th of February at the O2 academy in Bristol. These photos are of a band called 'White Lies' once i have photoshopped and edited these photos they will be suitable to put in or on the front cover of my music magazine.

These are some photos i took when i went to a gig at the O2 academy in Bristol on the 15th of February. These photos are of a band called 'Florence and the Machine', these will come in handy when making my front cover and contents page.

Font Ideas

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These are some font ideas for my Music magazine title. I got these fonts from a website called www.Dafont.com here you can write in the text you like and it will show you what it looks like, then i pressed print screen and pasted it into word where i cropped out the font and pasted it into word so i could upload it into my blog. I am going to call my nusic magazine 340.29 m/sic because 340.29 m/s is the equasion for the speed of sound and the m/s stands for miles per second but i am calling it 340.29 m/sic this is a play on words because the m/sic looks like it says music and since it is a music magazine i fort this was a good idea for a title. The fonts are all very different and i like all of them in different ways but some of them the / does'nt come up and some are more suited for a music magazine than others and for these reasons i think i am going to use either the second one down because it stands out and attracts the passer buyers attention or the forth one down because this has an indy rock feeling to it as it has little pictures next to the letters like the skull on the M, this is perfect for my magazine as my music magazine is goin to be an ind one.

Questinaire Results

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These are the results from my questionaire about music magazines. i found out very many interesting things from these results that i hope to take into account and include when making my music magazine. These results were carried out by members of my family, friends and media class.

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This is a Power point presentation of a magazine cover from empire magazine that i presented to the class at the start of the course. This is useful research because it shows the key things on a magazine cover and this will be useful when i make my music magazine cover.

Empire Magazine Essay

Empire Movie Magazine



I am writing my media essay on Empire Magazine more specifically the cover of this month (September’s addition). For those who don’t know Empire is a film magazine that comes out once a month is reviews films and talks discusses ones that are coming out and interviews the stars, directors and producers. It also contains quizzes, polls, DVD reviews book reviews game reviews, the latest gadgets and photo shoots. The target audience of this magazine would be mainly male and would be mainly ages 16-25 but 26-30 would easily be close because this magazine is aimed at a more adult audience. We know this because there is lots of writing and very few pictures, it also goes into great detail about things with words that a younger audience my not understand. There target audience would like films and most likely regularly see one in the cinema and own a lot of DVDs this is why there is a DVD review section.
Empires institution is a global one empire magazine is owned by Bauer a magazine company which makes 238 different magazines including; FHM, Heat, Zoo, Mojo, Q, Kerrang and many more worldwide in 15 countries as well as TV and radio stations. Empires institution is a huge one boasting that over 26 million adults in the UK read a Bauer title.

The layout of the September 2008 cover particular cover is similar to the theme of previous Empire covers in that it has the new film that they are going to talk about in a big article on the front. This happens every month so the reader knows what film is going to be discussed this month. It has a large photo of Daniel Craig holding a gun looking rough and dangerous. This attracts audiences straight away and the target audience know that the contence of the main article is James Bond. It also has the large Empire title in red letters columns down the side of what is also featured in the article. The only time this does not happen is with the tribute magazines such as the recent Heath Leger one in April, special editions and subscriber editions. It also has the title of the magazine Empire at the top of the cover with a theme or a slogan above that in this case its “James Bond is back!” This catches the consumer’s eye and makes he or she take a closer look. Also has the name of the movie and various over information such as other films, price, any free give a ways or competitions and the internet site.

The use of the images not only attracts the reader but informs them what big block buster film is going to be talked about in this issue. If the reader wants to see this film when it comes out they can buy the magazine and learn more. They often use big block buster movies because they know more people will want to see these films and therefore more people are more likely to buy this issue. The other information such as the title is there to tell the consumer what the magazine is in this case it says Empire which is a pretty well known film magazine but just encase the consumer didn’t know it also says “The Worlds biggest movie magazine” underneath the title. It also has the film title that the picture on the cover referees to just encase the reader didn’t know what it was. This is always large and in the middle of the cover.It also has the words “Unbeatable Access” This makes it sound unique and that empire are the only magazine to have this information. Underneath that it has Quantum of Solace in big font that is a silvery metallic colour. This could be a connotation of the colour of a gun and definitely stands out to grab the passer buyer’s attention. Underneath that in small white font there is a caption “Inside the bloodiest bond movie ever” This is significant because anyone who knows the James Bond movies will know that Bond is short for James Bond and a kind of nickname also the word inside makes it look like they have inside access that again no other magazine has.The colour and font of the title is designed to stand out on the shelf and catch a passer buyers eye its font is large and red this stands out against the back ground picture which is never the same colour unless the title is a different colour as on special editions. The film’s title is also large and a different colour to the back ground and title so it contrasts and stands out.

Also there is a callout in the bottom left corner that says “077 picture special! Connery & Co as you’ve never seen them before” this is also a connotation to mainly the target audience in that the target audience would know that Connery is short for Sean Connery an actor who played bond, they would know this because they love films and the average person wouldn’t necessarily know that. Also the part that says “as you’ve never seen them before” again implies that Empire have something no one else has making you more inclined to buying it. The cover successfully catches the target audience’s eye by having a large title with bright colours to attract the eye of the consumer then it has the subtitle “The world’s biggest movie magazine”. This is key to attracting the target audiences eye because the target audience is film lovers and so having that subtitle will encourage the consumer to buy it also having the back ground as a scene from a movie attracts the reader because the reader are people who like films and would want to see it also having the movie title in the centre of the cover tells the reader what film the picture is from and if the reader is excited about seeing it witch the target audience reader (a film buff) would it encourages them to buy it.The cover of the magazine is also designed so that the fold point still has the face of Daniel Craig’s face and torso, the title and the title of the movie this is so that if folded of displayed on a shop shelf you still see the key things that attract.


Conor Deedigan

This is a magazie essay i wrote on the 15th of October very early into the media corse. It is about Empire Magazine a film magazine but it is useful to my research as it still focus's on a magazine cover and it picks a part many of the techniques used and skills used. It also evaluates it well which i will have to do when making my front cover for my music magazine.

Music Magazine Essay

I am writing about the front cover of a music magazine called NME, NME stands for New Musical Express. The Magazine’s first issue was published on the 7th March 1952. It was initially published in a non-glossy tabloid format on standard newsprint. On the 14 November 1952 it created the first UK single chart. The institution that owns NME is IPC Media, it is a national institution and one of the United Kingdom's leading magazine publishers selling over 350 million copies each year. It was formed as International Publishing Company in 1963. NME itself goes out on a weekly basis reporting and reviewing on the latest bands, gigs, singles and albums. its circulation according to sales figures between Jan-Jun 08 is approximately 56,284.

Other forms of media the NME has is a website called www.NME.com which was set up in 1996 and offers the latest up to date news, tickets for gigs, merchandise, free downloads such as mp3s, wallpaper and screen savers and a chance to e-mail in letters to be published in the magazine. I recently went to an Iglu and Hartly gig in Bristol and one of my friends that I went with sent an e-mail that was published in the 8th October issue. NME.com was awarded Online Magazine Of The Year in 1999 and in 2001 Anthony Thornton was awarded Website Editor Of The Year on three occasions. The NME also have an awards show held every year to celebrate the greatest new music over the past year. The nominations and eventual winners are voted for by the readers of the magazine before the awards. There is also an NME tour across Britain where they tour some of, if not all of the bands up for nominations.

NME’s target audience are teenagers of both genders but according to NME.com their readers are approximately 65% male. It is clear that the producers are trying to appeal to teenagers because the content, language and writing style is very modern. The writers use lots of slang, swear words and jokes aimed at teenagers when reviewing, and the advertisements are of products for younger people. The percent of 16-24 year olds who read NME is 50% with just 23% for 25-34 year olds, again according to NME.com.

It is obvious by the front cover itself that it is aimed at a teenage audience. In the cover of the 16th February 2008 issue there is a big picture of The Wombats that takes up the page. The Wombats are very animated, the three band members are all striking different poses, one is jumping in the air, another is saluting and one is holding up his hair. The caption below the band’s name, “The Wombats” is in a large font, colourful and on a slant to catch attention, is the sentence “Why Britain’s gone silly for the lords of the indie dance floor”. This in itself is a rhetorical answer and you want to read it to find out why Britain has gone silly for the lords of the indie dance floor, but this also represents the band because in the picture they are doing silly things. The word “lords” also implies they are royalty so you automatically make the connotation that because they are being referred to as royalty they must be good, which may also make you want to read on. The word “silly” is a denotation, it signifies an image in your mind of fun
and wildness. This band are not boring and this could be aimed at young people because young people are often referred to in this way, and young people often think adults are serious and boring. Another connotation is the column along the top of the cover that says in big bold letters “GLASTO”, then bullet points the headliners, then has a statement that says “FANS REACT TO SHOCK 2008 HEADLINERS”. The connotation is the word Glasto that means Glastonbury festival but the slang version of the name could be associated with a younger audience, because it makes the name sound hip and cool. Also the sentence with it makes the reader want to find out more, especially a reader who is interested in the festival or is going to it. The representation of this cover is a positive one showing a fun and wacky magazine cover and possibly a fun and wacky content. The only stereotypes being made are the ones that this band looks as if to be aimed at a younger audience and that this band isn’t for adults but over all this is an effective magazine. The large font and colourful text all around the cover attracts the reader and the text written on further inspection makes the reader want to find out more. This particular cover if definitely an eye catcher!


This is an essay i wrote just before starting the music magazine course work, this essay is on the music magazine NME. I chose to write it on NME because i was sure from the start that i wanted to write my music magazine on the music i like which is indy rock music and NME writes about indy rock so NME is what hopefully my magazine is going to be closest at looking like. This essay is good research because it gives me an insight into what my magazine may roughly look like obveusly my magazine will be my own work and nothing like NME but will still use the same sort of style as it is the same genre.

This is an image from NME magazine an alternative and indy music magazine. This magazine is ideal for my research as it is an indy magazine and similar to the one i am hoping to produce. I also wrote an Essay on NME magazine and on an article in NME magazine to further my research into this magazine. This particular cover has an image of the band Franz Ferdinand standing behind one behind each other against a plain background with the text of the band in front of them, the plain background has an interesting effect because it draws your focus to the band but makes the front cover plainer.

This is an image of a front cover of Mojo music magazine. Mojo music magazine is not an idny rock magazine it focus's more on iconic music, the people who created it and the legends of music throughout time and offers a CD for free with most issues. However this is still solid research into music magazine front covers, this particular cover has an image of the band Oasis the shot is a mid-shot with the band standing one behind each other giving the impression of being united the title of the magazine is behind the band and the name of the band in bold in front to stand out. This is a good way of catching the attention of the audience and impacting the image and text in the readers mind this might be something to think when creating my magazine.

This is an image of the front cover of a Q music magazine. Q magazine is more of a rock music magazine but does includes Indy rock as well as other genres of music. Tis particular cover is ideal because it has a mid shot of Brendon Flowers the lead singer of the band The Killers who are an indy rock band. I am aiming to make an Indy rock magazine and Q magazine is good research into music magazines.

This plain blue background is a bit plain but is still a stable background for a Indy rock band to stand in front of. This shot is straight on a fills the scene so that the background is plain and doesn't distract from the band.

This wall is a great spot for an Indy band to stand in front of. The graffiti gives connotations of rebellion and anarchy that's great for a teenage rock band. This shot is at an angle to make it more interesting and band members could be shot from the back to the front to give them the impression of getting bigger. Also the lead singer could stand at the front to give the connotation of being the leader going first to show the way.

These are some photos myself and another student took for a back ground for are band to stand in front of for our front cover. I am aiming to produce a Indy rock magazine so the photos i have produced are photos that this particular genre may use. This is a picture of a wall engulfed by dying plant life this may be a bit to heavy for Indy rock but may be good for heavy rock. The shot is portrait and fills the screen this is to see the whole of the plant climbing the wall.

Music Magazine Artical Essay

This is my first entery for my Media Portfolio blog, i plan to present my work like this from now until the end of the corsework unit. We were set a task over the Christmas holidays to write an essay on a music magazine article we were asked to look at; connotations, dennotations, institutions, target audience, forms and conventions and representations. I wrote my essay on an article i found in NME reveiwing 'The Killers' gig in the Royal Albert Hall in London on Monday the 3rd of November. The essay i produced is below.



Music Magazine Article Review

I am writing about an article I found in an NME magazine 15th November 2008 issue. The article I am writing about is on ‘The Killers’ concert in The Royal Albert Hall in London on 3rd of November, this was written by a journalist called Hamish Macbain. I am going to analyze this article and explain some forms and conventions, institutions, target audience and generally background information on the magazine it is from NME.

NME stands for New Musical Express. The institution that owns NME is IPC Media; it is a national institution and one of the United Kingdom's leading magazine publishers selling over 350 million copies each year. For a more accurate figure its circulation according to sales figures between Jan-Jun 08 is approximately 56,284. It was formed as International Publishing Company in 1963. NME itself goes out on a weekly basis reporting and reviewing on the latest bands, gigs, singles and albums. The Magazine’s first issue was published on the 7th March 1952. It was initially published in a non-glossy tabloid format on standard newsprint. Other forms of media the NME has is a website called www.NME.com which was set up in 1996 and offers the latest up to date news, tickets for gigs, merchandise, free downloads such as mp3s, wallpaper and screen savers and a chance to e-mail in letters to be published in the magazine.

NME’s target audience are teenagers of both genders but according to NME.com their readers are approximately 65% male. It is clear that the producers are trying to appeal to teenagers because the content, language and writing style is very modern. The writers use lots of slang, swear words and jokes aimed at teenagers when reviewing, and the advertisements are of products for younger people. The percent of 16-24 year olds who read NME is 50% with just 23% for 25-34 year olds, again according to NME.com. This is shown clearly when reading the article through the metaphors like “the jumped-up bonkersness that is the flag waving madness” this metaphor is obviously aimed at a younger audience because of the sheer craziness of it teenagers are often seen as being crazy or doing crazy things this metaphor captures the party life attitude of a teenager. They also use humour that is aimed at teenagers for example “Las Vegas; a cartoon city, a place where people get bored so easy they constantly have to knock down the buildings and rebuild them again in the shape of breasts” in this case its sexual humour. They also use slang and teenage words to captivate the teenage audience and keep their attention for instance the use of the word “punters” and “banter” these words are words not commonly used in news articles but the laid back approach of NME using slag attracts the teenage reader.

There are many types of styles of writing in the article one of which is personal experience when it says “but its soul-scouring dancefloor-filling genius even gets Sir Paul McCartney, one box down from NME tonight, clapping along like it’s the first time he’s heard some serious rhythm” this biography experience that happened to the writer gives us the feeling that we are there too. The captions below the photos are featurette’s because they are short comedic caption that are light hearted or humours. The final style used is the Interview although this interview is unusually short it still gives some insightful information on the lead singer of The Killers, Brandon Flower when it says “Not one for his banter, the most meaningful chat we got out of him all night is, “This place is too pretty for us” which he mutters as he surveys the vast ceiling of the posher than posh hall.” This gives us some information we would not necessarily know about Brandon Flowers.

In this article ‘The Killers’ are being represented as wild, eccentric, fluorescent, exotic and “ludicrous” characters. This is being done by the way they are being described for instance ‘Brandon Flowers’ the lead singer of ‘The Killers’ is reported as wearing a “blazer adorned with some animal fluff and feathers” and as “prances around the fairy-lit palm trees onstage like the king of a veritable indie-pop castle” these statements enforce the ways he is being represented. The message behind this article is that The Killers put on a great show and really get the crowd moving the sentence “like a doctor armed with a hammer heading for you reflexes, The Killers can’t help but make you kick your legs high in the air no matter how hard you try to fight it.” this makes it sound as if you have no choice but to like it and they know exactly how to get the crowd moving. The stereotype that’s being put across here is that pop stars are wild, loud and outgoing and price is no obstacle for them because they are so rich this is highlighted when he says “pomposity is far from a dirty word for The Killers; for them the bigger, the brasher, the better.” this makes them sound like they have gone to no expense in their concert. I think the message here is positive because its saying The Killers are very good crowd pleasers that know how to make good music that you can dance to but the stereotype that they are very celebrity like go to no expense carelessly spending money to make it bigger and better is negative. The picture represents Brandon Flowers as pouring his heart out as he sings he has his hand on his heart staring up singing into a microphone the caption in the bottom corner of the magazine highlights this it says “Brandon’s Romeo routine got him nowhere with Macca” by comparing him to Romeo it gives the message that he is a romantic but the word routine makes him look like its just a routine he puts on and is some what of a fake. The name ‘Macca’ is in reference to Sir Paul McCartney who was sitting in a balcony above watching the concert this is funny because Sir Paul McCartney is a man so this is giving an impression that Brandon Flowers is homosexual and by abbreviating his name and giving him a comic nickname it makes the caption much funnier. The other photo is a picture of The Killers before the show in the outfits they are going to where on stage they are very relaxed and laid back in the photo and this gives the reader the impression they are very confident and not afraid of going on stage their outfits are extravagant and the caption underneath illuminates this with a pun “The WWF are currently conducting an investigation of The Killers wardrobe” this is funny because two members of The Killers are wearing animal skin and fur and ‘The WWF’ is an organization that is devoted to protecting wild life so this gives us the idea that The Killers are using real animal fur but it is not to be taken literally as it is a light hearted joke.

In conclusion this article is very effective as it gives us an insight into what a Killers concert is like. It explains the atmosphere, the crowd, the props, the set, the costumes and the music as well as giving us an opinion on the gig and keeping us entertained all the way through with jokes and humor. It also gives us so useful information that we may not have known about Brandon Flowers the lead singer and gives us comparisons and detailed descriptions of each tack as well as the album over all the interview overall is gripping and knowledgeable I especially enjoy the metaphors and similes.

I completed my essay in the Christmas holidays, my teacher and i were very pleased with my essay and grade, i got a strong levle 4 and my teacher worte "Well done Conor! This is excelant. Your analysis is genrally highly proficiant and makes good use of media teminology." This was very pleaseing to me because as i tryed to use as much media teminology as i could. My target is to comment on possible colour connotations/mise-en-scene and i plan to do this in the future.