Deconstructions of 3 Music Magazine Contents Pages

Masthead

The masthead is at the top left of the page. This is usually the layout of magazine contents pages. It is the same font and colours as the masthead on the front cover, something that has also kept to magazine conventions.  The colours used; red, black and white are very simple but bold colours that stand out and the same colours are used for the contents pages subtitles too.

Necessary Information

The date accompanies the masthead, something that is usually done in the magazine world, as readers need to know which issue as they may already have a previous issue. There is no page number as this is the first page telling what is going to be on the pages that follow.

Text

The text is very factual, telling you about what happened when ‘Everyone got on board Africa Exprez’. There is a lot of text making up the contents page as it even has its own article. It also has a column of alphabetically listed bands, along the left hand side of the contents page. The contents page also has descriptions of articles which will be in the magazine, teasing you to but the magazine for its content. The subheadings are only short, only consisting of a few words with no photo attached to emphasis the text. The main image is framed by text on each side of it, so that the first thing to catch your attention is the main photo and its headline. The contents page has numerical features; page numbers which go with each article or singer.

Font

The font used the same for the masthead as well as the subtitles, so the subtitles stand out, showing that the subtitles have the same importance as the masthead. This is also a trick the media use so that once you have looked at the NME logo, you scan the rest of the text for the same logo so that it stands out. It is also highlighted in black like the masthead, against the white bold text so that it is the next thing you see once4 you’ve looked at the title. They have also used bolder and bigger little headings, then smaller, less bold text, with longer content so that it brakes the page up more.

Images

There is a main image, nearly in the center of the page, so your main focus is on the image. There is also an image of another magazine cover below, with text attached telling you to ‘Subscribe’. This shows that readers may just be getting the magazine for the name, not the articles/people that are in it. The main article has a bigger image than the text itself, emphasizing its importance. The main image is the only image which as writing over the top of it, this suggests that the subject is more important, however the writing doesn’t overlap on any of the people which suggests that the people are also contributing to the selling of the article.

Composition

The main image could be described as a long shot, making the reader look into the image more so they can figure out who is in the shot. It is layered to look as though everything is on top of the image, however it still takes up a lot of the page. This contents page is more text led rather than image led, for all there is a few images which accompanies the text it’s the text which will make the reader want to read more of the magazine,

Linguistic Features

The magazine is informal, very direct to the reader, but without asking rhetorical questions but answering questions that aren’t even on the page. This contents page, for all it is bullet point notes, still contains information to entice the reader to turn over to the next page. The subheading mainly contain enigma codes, teasing the reader with enough information to know what the magazine wants you to know but not enough, so that you are still wanting more details.

Colour

The contents page only has 4 main colours; red, black, white and yellow. The red is only mainly used for alphabetical text or numerical text, maybe to suggest order with the red writing. It could also suggest that because it is used for the masthead it is where people will look to get their first impressions of the magazine and the magazine wants the reader to understand and then get the magazine. The black is used for most of the text and is also the background colour for the masthead, so this is the next thing that the reader will look at. The white is used against the black background, linking it back to the masthead again. However the yellow is only used for the subscription bit, making it stand out against all the other colours and texts going on.

Masthead

The masthead is at the top left side of the page, with the title ‘Contents’ it is then repeated again further down the screen with a subtitle called ‘Review’. This is how Q magazine usually lays its contents page out, so that if the reader didn’t know from the cover page, now know what the magazine is called and what the magazine contains. The contents page has kept with the house style, by keeping the three main colours; red, black and white.

Necessary Information

The date accompanies the masthead, something that is usually done in magazines so the reader knows which issue it is. The contents page also has two websites which is also in the other ‘Q’ magazine. There is no page number on this contents page however in ‘Q’ magazine there is usually the page number and logo alongside it at the bottom right hand side of the page.

Text

The text is quite informal using phrases to describe somebody by saying ‘Big-haired couple’. The text is basically just giving you pieces of information which are relevant to the music magazine ‘Q’. Its purpose is so that it doesn’t put the readers off by speaking with long, complicated words, but the reader is still able to get information that has meaning. There is quite a lot of text that surrounds one main image, however it really doesn’t give much away with this information as they are enigma codes. They use subheadings like ‘Cash for Questions’ so that the readers are interested in the article (getting money), without giving you the knowledge of how to do it. The layout is ordered so that the articles which g down is in numerical order of when they appear in the magazine.

Font

Mainly the same font is used throughout the contents page, it uses the same font for the subtitles as the masthead so that when the reader has looked at the masthead they will scan the rest if the page for the same text. There is however, different font for different pieces of text as there is a subheading saying ‘Women in Music’, this is in italics so that it stands out against the mainly used font. Most of the colour used for the contents page is black however there are some texts that are white and red which breaks the page up more and so that it doesn’t looked too full of information. The bold text is used for the subheadings so that they stand out against the other text and break up the page again.

Images

There is one main image that takes up most of the page, which is framed by text, with a much smaller image at the bottom, middle part of the cover so that once you’ve looked at the image that is eye level you are naturally drawn to the picture that is at the bottom. Both images are anchored by text so that if the reader doesn’t know who the person/people in the image they will know in the caption, which accompanies it. There is no writing layered on top of the images apart from the main image, its caption is overlapping it, however there is no text overlapping their faces. Music magazines’ contents page usually has a main image in the middle of the screen, framed by text, then there is a smaller image, sometimes it is picture with an article and other times it is another magazine so that you will subscribe to the magazine (Q/NME).

Composition

The main image is a close up on one person and the other image is a medium shot with two people. Text is used to frame the images, however this is not to say that the text doesn’t stand out with using bold, italics and different colours. There is only two images to emphasis two main articles which suggests that these two articles are the best way to represent the magazine best. The contents page is more text led, however it doesn’t give you too much information so that it is pointless you reading the rest of the magazine but enough to tease you.

Linguistic Features

The contents page contains rhetorical questions and enigma codes, which teases the reader to read the rest of the magazine. The contents page also has little comments and is telling you a little background of the articles so that you know which story is being told.

Colour

In this magazine there is only 3 main colours, red, black and white. This links to the other music magazine as they use these main colours as well. Also the only other colour which is used is in the photos which are usually tan colours and the background of the image is usually grey. The effect of using this is that your main focus is on the text but then because there is a different shade of colour in the image you are naturally drawn to the image too.

Masthead

The masthead is at the top, left hand side of the page, accompanied by a black block taking up the top of the contents page. The ‘Q’ logo is repeated again, along with a subheading ‘Review’. The colours used; red, black and white are very simple, something that is similar to the NME magazine which suggests that these are the colours to use when doing a contents page for a music magazine.

Necessary Information

The date accompanies the masthead, along with websites to get in touch with the magazine. This is a very modern and clever way the magazine has thought of as the internet is coming to be the most popular way to find information, it has made both the print media form and internet sites combine so that they have a wider range of audience. There is a page number at the bottom right hand of the screen, and the text size is the smallest on the page, maybe to suggest that it isn’t very important compared to the other text. There is also a small ‘Q’ logo on the left hand of the screen to repeat again which magazine it is.

Text

The text is quite informal, using words like ‘dodgy’, so it uses words a younger audience would understand. Also this magazine suggests that is for an older audience too as it has bands like ‘Oasis’ which some young audience won’t know who they are as they aren’t on the radio or television. At the left hand side of the page there is a column of subheadings and little enigma codes in numerical order on how they appear in the magazine. The subheadings are only a few words long but are bold and bigger than the enigma codes that are underneath which are only in note form, commenting on the above subheading. In contrast to the NME magazine this magazine lists its contents by the pages instead of the contents/article. This may be so that the reader can understand the layout of the magazine as a whole and that the magazine is more important than its actual content. The text is used to frame the main image, so that the first thing you look at when you turn over to the contents page is the photo of ‘The Courteeners’.

Font

The font used is the same as the mastheads, meaning when the masthead is big the subtitle is big and when the masthead is small the subtitle is the same size. They have done this so that when you look for the ‘Q’ logo you will find a subtitle along with it. The font for the page numbers and enigma codes are the same font however the page numbers are red so that they stand out more against the black writing that makes up most of the page. Also the subheadings are in bold, so that again the text is broken up so that the subtitle stands out against the other texts.

Images

There are two images, one is the main image which makes up most of the page, which is accompanied with text so that the readers know who the people in the photo is if they didn’t already (they would usually be well known so that once you’ve seen their faces you would want to read about why they are in this magazine e.g. New album). The main image is not overlapped by anything but its caption, which suggests that it is very important, enough so that everything else comes second to the image. The other image is of ‘Nick Cave’, who has an article on page 162. This must mean that the magazine believes that he famous enough or that the article is relevant enough to the magazines’ readers, that they will want to read that specific article in this magazine against all the others.

Composition

The main image is a long shot, making the reader look into the contents page like the NME magazine. It is also similar to the magazine in that on 3 sides the image is surrounded by text. For all this contents page has a few photos, the contents page for this magazine is quite text led because the words speak for itself, and it doesn’t need photos to help the reader understand what is trying to be said. This suggests it is for a older age range rather than early teens as in teen magazines there’s lots of photos to emphasize what is being said.

Linguistic Features

There aren’t really any rhetorical questions but comments and opinions on what the article is about for example ‘58| MP4 Not content with running the country, MPs would also like to rock. Worryingly, they’ve formed a band to prove it. ’.

Colour

The main colours for this contents page is

red, black and white which  carries on to contents page from the magazine cover. This suggests that the colours and type of font is the house style ‘Q’ has. The image is also made up of black and white with the exception of the green grass and tan shoes of one of the people in the photo. However keeping to the colour scheme, even the background is dark and murky.