Classic Rock and Kerrang! double page spreads alalysis'

The first article is form ‘Classic Rock’ magazine and is part of a 14 page section where they look at some of the bands and musicians that have ‘survived’ rock ‘n’ roll. Most of the other articles in the series are in a similar style with the same conventions of an article.

This article has a very basic layout which, similarly to the contents page, reflects the audiences age and maturity levels. It does this with the style in which it follows the conventions of a typical article. For example the drop cap, appropriate pull quote, kicker, main image, caption and gutters. Most of the text has small serifs which help with the maturity of the article.

However beneath the sophisticated exterior, upon further inspection there are hints at the bands rebellious past. The images location is in a dark street, their clothes are jeans with studs and t-shirts with rock-related insignia on it This gives the article a rebellious rock ‘n’ roll twist. The language used by the band in the pull quote is also rebellious, you don’t hear the word ‘crap’ in the guardian do you?

This article is in the magazine because it is about a band that the target audience, of around 40 years of age, will remember and probably be fans of. The writing style and image is meant to make the reader remember about the band when they were at their prime. This is shown in the style of the image, style of the text and style of the language.


The second article is from ‘Kerrang!’ magazine and is a part of a much larger article covering 8 sides. This page is covered in effects and immediately we can tell it is very different from the other magazine. The previous magazine concentrated more on content and getting an interview with the band, with very little effort into fancy effects. The title ‘All That Glitter’ for example is surrounded by stars and is a very swirly font. This works well with the colour scheme of the article along with the clothes that the band is wearing in the image. This all suggests a very glamorous lifestyle and a lot of money, which isn’t very surprising from the biggest band in the world at the moment. Even the drop cap has a star behind it.

Speaking of drop caps, this article has the same codes and conventions of a traditional double-paged spread with a large title, drop cap, kicker but not many others; this suggests that the editor was trying to achieve a simplistic effect. This would also explain why there is only one image and that on the next side there are only 4 lines of pull quote with a huge image taking up both pages.

It is odd that this band would be featured in ‘Kerrang!’ because the magazine usually tends to have articles about heavier bands and more rebellious bands. However they do have articles about live bands, and Muse has won the award for best live band year after year. They are also one of the largest bands in the world at the moment, so featuring them in their magazine would appeal to people both inside and outside their regular readership.