Rolling Stone magazine uses quite a simple layout for their front covers. The colour schemes are revolved around the picture and the fonts are easy to read and aesthetically pleasing. The colour of the fonts used for the cover lines and the masthead have all been taken from the image, black and grey have been used throughout making sure the cover doesn't look over crowded or unprofessional. The image on the front of the magazine links to the main cover line which is in a larger font and is a simple mid-shot of the artist with a direct address drawing the audiences attention to the featured artist. The cover lines don't overlap the image much in order to keep the image clear so people are able to recognise the artist when passing. The cover lines are also short and snappy and are split up with small lines. Breaking up the text and making sure their short and easy to read attracts the public maybe when passing by or browsing amongst other magazines.
The masthead is stereotypically at the top of the page and is an italic, serif font which makes it look a bit more formal and serious than other magazine covers. The masthead is slightly covered in the middle by the top of the artists head, although this is alright for people who recognise the magazine's house style but not if its the first time someones seen the magazine. This magazine doesn't have a sell line but features other conventions of a magazine such as a price, issue number and web site. Stereotypically, an issue number, price and website are displayed at the top right hand corner of the magazine for the audience to easily see but are kept small in order to keep attention to other aspects of the magazine. Although the magazine contains a few stereotypical features of a magazine, it doesn't feature many conventions of a magazine such as a bar code and sell line, this could be because the designer wanted to continue the minimal approach and keep the attention to the important features of the magazine.
This Kerrang magazine cover takes a different approach to the magazine cover by filling it with a number of different cover lines and images, although the magazine still looks professional it is quite crowded and could potentially draw the audiences attention away from the important cover lines. However the magazine does contain a number of stereotypical conventions of a magazine such as an issue number, bar code, web address and a centered masthead. Although the masthead covers the image slightly, this may be better for people who do not recognise the magazine. All of the cover lines, images etc are dotted around the magazine in no particular order. The large amount of content on the cover page could potentially interest the reader, however it could also put them off with the designers cluttered approach making it hard to interpret parts of the magazine.
A basic colour scheme is kept throughout the page using yellow, pink and white to complement and stand out on the black background. The masthead and cover lines are all written in a sans-serif font which suggests the magazine is quite informal. The cover lines are also written in a combination of bold and not bold fonts which offers an alternative to breaking up the text using lines etc. The masthead for Kerrang magazine is a very bold, white font with lines through looking like it has been smashed, possibly reflecting the onomatopoeia. The masthead matches the cover line with the artists name 'Lost Prophets' which although carries on the colour scheme and fonts, it makes the masthead fade back and doesn't enable it to stand out as well as it could on its own.
Spin magazine takes a similar approach to their cover page as Rolling Stone, with a simple layout and a basic colour scheme. Although the cover is quite simple is it very effective and allows the audience to focus on the important parts of the magazine such as the cover lines and featured artists. The colour scheme is again linked to the image. The larger, black coloured, sans-serif font is taken from the black on the artists jumper, whereas the smaller blue font has been taken from the artists eyes. This method is very effective and is aesthetically pleasing. The use of colours linked to the image that stand out on the background make the text easy to read and pulls the magazine together making it look very professional. The image is also very simple with a mid-shot of the artist with a direct address which is common throughout many magazine covers. Due to the fact the image is simple and only includes the artist with a plain background and some shadowing, the rest of the magazine can stand out. Without a background the artist stands out and the audience is not distracted by complicated background.
The cover lines on the left of the cover page are kept short to sum up the best features of the magazine content but are in a range of font sizes which makes the cover more interesting whilst breaking up the text and making it easier to read. The cover lines on the right of the page are right justified making them look neat, these cover lines name some of the artists featured in the magazine to give the audience people to recognise and convince them to buy the magazine. Similarly to the Rolling Stones magazine, Spin doesn't include a bar code, this could be because they are trying to keep the audiences attention on the important features of the magazine and don't want to clutter the page. Spin magazine's masthead is quite different to other magazines and is made up simply of a red box with white lettering, the colour of the box makes the lettering stand out but doesn't match the colour scheme on the rest of the page however this could be a good thing as it makes it stand out.
The Clash music magazine cover takes a different approach to the other analysed magazines. The designer has created the front cover quite creatively and artistically which makes the cover stand out amongst other magazine covers. It would also attract the target audience when passing or browsing other magazines. There isn't an obvious colour scheme running through the cover, the designer has used colours that are bright, bold and vibrant however some of the colours in the artists clothes and in the background, link together. The only colour scheme being consistently carried through the magazine is the text, the bright pink and black used in the masthead is carried out through to the cover lines, linking them all together. The masthead is a unique logo with the 'a' and the 's' as one, although this is quite aesthetically pleasing and unique the logo could be quite hard to read.
Similarly to the 'Spin' magazine cover, some of the featured artists are written, in the same font and size and are linked to the masthead with the same colour scheme. This again would encourage the target audience by providing them with artists they recognise.
Clash does feature some quite conventional features such as a bar code, issue number and price. The designer of this cover has decided to include all of these in one box at the bottom right hand side, which keeps it neat and easy for the reader to find. Unlike other magazines, the photograph of the artist is a long shot which allows for all of the artist to be seen. The unconventional image and background suggest that the magazine is slightly unconventional and unique.
Cover page research summary
Typical conventions for music magazine covers include...
- A basic colour scheme usually taken from the main image
- A number of cover lines highlighting some of the best articles inside and a main colour line which is usually larger than other cover lines and often links to the main image
- A bar code, a date and an issue number
- A masthead stating the name of the magazine which is sometimes changed to be included with the general colour scheme
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