Magazine Analysis - NME Article

This is a double page spread of a magazine NME, a magazine that is aimed at young people who are fans of rock/indie music, from August 2007and has a feature on a band called “The Teenagers”. The article is about the band called “the teenagers” and gives an overview of who they are and what sort of music they produce.

The masthead of the page is the name of the band “the teenagers” and catches the attention of the audience first since it is in the centre of the page.
On the left hand side of this double page spread is an image of the band that takes up the entire side. The band members are all looking towards the camera which gives the magazine a personal feel as you read through it and creates a mode of address so the readers can relate to it. This is a common convention of music magazine articles and makes the reader feel close to the band and therefore more likely to continue reading.

There is a small box in the corner which looks like a a ripped piece of paper with small pieces of information on the band. The ripped effect is used to connote that teenagers are messy and uncareful with things, emphasising the point of the article which is about teenagers the band, as well as the age group.

In the middle of the page is the band name in a box same colour that is used throughout the spread. It stands out as the title as it is bigger than anything else on the page. But not so big that is becomes the only thing. There is also a shape above that says “NME loves” which gives support to the band and encourages people to buy their CD if their magazine likes it.This is another direct mode of address because the magazine is giving its own opinion, making it seem conversational and friendly.

There is an article on the page about the bands history and there are some pull quotes aswell which are highlighted inside a box of the same colour of the title. This makes the page corespond colour wise and makes them stand out on the page as well as clarifying to the readers that this is an actual interview rather than a review.

On the far right of the page in a column is some information on other bands similiar to this band. This is another method to make the reader feel involved in the article as well as folling the convention.
The language used throughout the article is both formal and informal to appeal to both age groups but mostly informal to connote that is how 'teenagers' speak, as well as appealing to the target audience and making the tone of the article sound conversational. Colloqual phrases are used such as 'Everyones talking about' and 'young dumb and full of.... fithy tunes'. These sorts of phrases wouldn't be used in magazines aimed at an older target audience.

The background behind the band is mostly of half naked women which is a typical stereotype of teenage boys. This is also linked to the pull quote in the centre of the page 'of course we're a sexual band. We're the teenagers and thats all they think about'. The language used in the text makes the reader feel as though they are chatting to a friend rather than reading a magazine and encourages them to relate to the band. This is done by the direct mode of address which is very calm and casual, using slang and some music jargon but not too much to scare readers away. The language is easy to understand for both muscially inclines readers and those that are interested in the artists themselves.

The sentence structure used is a mix of both short and long sentences so as to make it sound very professional.There is direct mode of address used by the band since they are all looking at the reader, making them feel more involved in the article

The style of writing is informal, using colloquial phrases and swear words such as would be used in normal conversation, so as to appeal to the target audience who would read this article for pleasure, aswell as to inform them about the band. However, the writing is also formal at times so as to appeal to the slightly older audience, who tend to use more sophisticated language.

The background of the page is white so the bold blue colour shows up in strong contrast against it. The black text is also easy to read against the background. The typeface used is the same throughout the magazine and is easy to read and understand.

In conclusion, the NME article follows certain conventions such as having a main image as the focus of the page, as well as the headline being central on the page. However, the mix of formal and informal language is quite unconventional for a music magazine aimed at young people, especially fans of rock music.