Drafting and Planning: My Chosen Front Cover Image

I have decided that this is the image I shall use for my magazine. This image does not contain direct address which I am pleased with as I don't want my main cover star to be the sort of band that is packed with attitude and are posers, I want the band and it's identity to be about the music, and I feel that this image shows that effectively. I may crop out the red sofa that can be seen. I feel the props of the instruments also help show that the band is about the music, because if I had the band looking at the camera and more of a close up shot I don't think the identity of the band would be as I want it. In my main cover line I think I will use say something the band being backstage as that would fit well with the image. 

Drafting and Planning: Article

I have started my article. I am fairly confident with how I have began, but may well change a few questions around if I decide against aspects I have included. It is as follows:



When the new hit Britpop band Loving Hate walked into the café where I was sat drinking my extra strong chocolate expresso, they all giggled simultaneously. Feeling as though I was the reason for their amusement, I didn’t get up to greet them. When they came and sat down opposite me, they revealed that they were in fact laughing at the drummer, Sebastian’s, new haircut. “He just looks ridiculous” laughed Joe Todd, the lead guitarist. After several minutes of unneeded courtesies, the band began ordering drinks. Joe questioned why I choose to meet in a café, a place where alcohol was not sold. Typical Britpop musician I thought. Joe seemed to be the bands unconventional leader, which typically would be the singer, but John Tibbits sat awkwardly and surveyed the scene while the other members of the band laughed and joked about this and that.  His younger brother, Ben, is the complete opposite to John. Cool and arrogant, he slouched in his chair, with his hands deep in his coat pockets. Seb, a few years younger than the other members but certainly with more intellect than Joe and Ben, seemed to have a constant grin on his face. After an extensive period of nothing but banter, I finally had the chance to ask Loving Hate some questions.

Q: So, Loving Hate, how did you come together to form a band?

Joe: Me, John and Ben went to school together, we played some shit for school and it formed from there. We found Seb when we got serious about it. We played some gigs for a year or two then we hit the big time. 
Ben: It was all my idea really.
Joe: Fuck off.

Q: Who's the most ambitious member of the band?

John: I would say me.
Joe: I would say me.
Ben: I wouldn't say me.
Seb: It is probably John. He writes most of the songs and makes most of the music while Ben and Joe tend to muck about and not do very much.
John: I would agree with that.
Ben: I wouldn't.

Q: Who's the smartest member of the band?

John: Well it isn't Ben I know that.
Ben: Piss off, I'm clever when I want to be.
Joe: Haha good one.
Ben: Honestly, although it pains me to say it, it is probably John.
Joe: Seb isn't far off though.
Seb: Finally a compliment, thank you.

Q: Who's the best looking band member?

Ben: Look no further.

Q: There is obviously banter flowing through the band, but are there any band rivalries?

Joe: John and Ben are brothers and they hate each other half the time.
John: I wouldn't go as far as hate.
Ben: I would.
Seb: Hate is too strong a word, but they do have the occasional argument.
Ben: More than occasional.
John: We all argument at some point, that is just what happens when you spend so much time together.
Seb: It is human nature to disagree on certain matters. Forgiveness, however, is essential.
Ben: Shut up Seb.

Q: Lets move on before someone kills Seb. The band is said to be the future of Britpop by critics. How does this make you feel? Do you agree with this?

John: I think it is spectacular that people think that about us! It is what we have always imagined, so it is a dream come true.
Joe: Yeah, it is great to be classed as the future. We agree with what they are saying to be honest.
Ben: We are the future of Britpop, simple as.

Q: How big do you think you could become?

Joe: I think we can be the biggest band in the world.
Ben: I wouldn't go that far.
John: I would.
Ben: Maybe if we had a better looking drummer.
Seb: Hey!

Q: Do you all hit the typical expectation of Britpop artists?

Joe: I think myself and Ben are more likely to be classed as typically Britpop than Seb and John.
Ben: What you on about, I am an angel.
John: I do not think I do. I have never taken drugs, been drunk, smoked, and I don't have sex with a different girl every night.
Seb: I am too young to do most of those things.

Q: As a band, who is your biggest inspiration?

John: For me it has got to be The Stone Roses and The Beatles.
Ben: For once I agree.
Seb: What a miracle, they finally agree.

Q: Feel like we have finally achieved some unity.

Ben: Fuck off, just because I like the same bands as him doesn't mean I like him.

Q: Moving swiftly on, lets talk about your new album. Is it purely Britpop, or is there any other genres included?

Joe: I would say there is some songs that are more soft rock, more lovey dovey.
John: Yeah that shit was written by Ben.
Ben: Just giving the people what they want.

Q: Whats your opinion on the album?

Ben: It is shit.
John: Shut up Ben,. I think it is decent, but we could do better.
Joe: I like it.
Seb: Me too.
Ben: The only good part is the bass.

Q: Where do you want to be in 5 years?

Joe: We want to be you biggest band in the world.
Ben: I wouldn't mind being a professional footballer.

When I finished chatting to the band, we shook hands and I wished them the best of luck for all their future endeavors. I think these are 4 young men who can do anything they want to. They are fun, talented and appeal to people of all ages. Watch this band, they could go along way.

Organisation/Drafting and Planning: Other Artists in my Magazine

As well as my main band, Loving Hate, I will include other artists and bands. These bands will be called: Middle Fingers, Cubstone and Ruthless Banter. An Artist in my magazine will be Greg. I will use already established bands and artists. These will be Blur, Noel Gallagher and Bob Dylan. Insult Country

1. Insult Country

Target Audience: Production Companies

Here are some production companies of magazines. I think that I will use IPC media as the producers of my magazine as my magazine is the same sort of style as NME.

Organisation/Drafting and Planning: Tracklisting

My main feature band, Loving Hate, have realised a new album called Epitaph. Their new album has 11 tracks. The tracklisting of the album is as follows:
1) Sword and Shield
2) 14
3) My Love
4) Don't Wait
5) Slow Song
6) Wine All Over Your Clothes
7) Song for Bob
8) Lights On
9) Lies and Seek
10) He Looked at Her
11) Epitaph

Drafting and Planning: My Band Identity

My main featured artist is going to be a new Britpop phenomenon called 'Loving Hate'. There are 4 members of the band, John, Joe, Ben and Seb. John and Joe are 18, Ben is 17 and Seb is 17. They became a band 2 years before they managed to get signed by Marshall Teller. The band played in small arenas often, till they found a defining sound. They now feel they are the future of Britpop, and maybe even music. Their single 'Sword and Shield' has been a hit and they have just released a new album, Epitaph. They hope to change the way that people see music and hope to have an effect worldwide, as they are an immensely ambitious group.

Drafting and Planning: Name of my Band

I have decided to call my band Loving Hate. I have said in a previous post that it was a possible name for my band and I have decided that is what I will name my band. I thought about using the actual name of my band, Static Irony, but decided that it perhaps didn't suit the britpop style of my magazine. I am pleased with the name Loving Hate, as it is a Shakespeare quote, and an oxymoron, and is just awesome I think. The phrase is ambiguous and imprecise, which adds a sense of mystery to my artist, as the public will wonder who Loving Hate are. The name is brimming with attitude, which presents the band typically as Britpop, simply through the name.

Drafting and Planning: Name of my Magazine

I have established a name for my magazine. It is S&A. This stands for Scales and Arpeggios. In music, a scale is any set of musical notes ordered by fundamental frequency or pitch, whereas an arpeggio is an musical technique where notes in a chord are played or sung in sequence, one after the other, rather than ringing out simultaneously. Both these words are heavily linked to music, and are techniques essential to musicians. This links to the fact that I want my magazine to be about the music, not the pretty face on the cover. I am pleased with the name of my magazine, as the two words are musical terms, and I feel S&A is catchy. 

Drafting and Planning: Photos for Double Page Spread

Here are some photos taken when the band were playing. I think that they are successful photos, as it is a music magazine and these photos are of people play music so they are pretty suitable. 

Drafting and Planning: Contents Page Images

For my contents page I think I'll have an image of the band that is similar to the front cover image. I think I may also take a photo of my brother Greg and have him on there as a supporting act. At the last gig I played, there was another band there who I took a few photos of while they were playing, so I may use an image of them, as a possible review article.

Here is an image I may use for the review article. 

Drafting and Planning: Photos for Front Cover

I have taken some photos for the front cover of a magazine, The location of the photos is a dressing room in which me and my band were sitting before our last gig. I positioned the band very purposely, having the lead singer sitting slightly away from the  band, with the drummer perched on the end of the sofa with the lead guitarist, and myself, the bassist, sitting on the sofa. The clothes worn could have been more suited to my genre, especially the drummer, but I feel they are suitable enough. I think the photos give a sense of relaxation as we look very laid back, which I feel is an important feature for a britpop band. Overall I am pleased with the photos. Although I didn't manage to include any real props, except guitars in cases in some photos, I think the photos portray a personality and a laid back attitude, which is what I was hoping for, 

Target Audience: Britpop

The target audience of britpop is varied. People in their late 20's and 30's, who were young people at the time of britpop's domination, are probably the main audience interested in the genre. However, I want my magazine to be like the new era of britpop, signifying the best genre ever coming back changed and even better. So, I want the magazine to not only interest past lovers of britpop, but also young people who, in my opinion, are in dire need of a change of music taste. There are some people, like myself, who already enjoy britpop, so will be immediately attracted to the magazine. I do not only want to attract people who like britpop already, I want to get more people interested in britpop because of my magazine. In order to do this I will include bands in my magazine that have been past Britpop stars, but also include new and upcoming Britpop artists, such as my main feature.

Organisation:Tracker

Over the last few weeks I feel I have done well with my blog posts. My aim for improvement was to add more target audience, which I have done. I still feel I could do more, as I have done less target audience than the other three areas, but I have started to achieve a good amount of posts for each aspect. I think I should stop working on research into similar products now, and start working more on target audience and drafting and planning.  

Organisation: Blocking

I have recently been thinking about the positioning of my band and where I want them to be. I referred back to this post where the image used is from the same photo shoot as the one above. I would like the position my band either like this or like the image in my last post. I would my band to be positioned like this as they are all placed in certain places. The lead singer is placed at the front, showing his importance as the lead singer of the band. I feel that this may be a good idea as all of my band will fit into the frame neatly and  can all be seen clearly and separately. I will continue to refer back to this post and the one before when I come to do my photo shoot so that I have a clear idea of what kind of positioning I want my band to be in for my main cover, contents page and double page spread.

Target Audience: NME

I have been looking at many magazines, one of them being NME. I have been researching NME's target audience so that I can help develop ideas of my own. I have learnt that NME's target audience ranges from 15-24 which makes me feel as though mine should be similar. Although a more male orientated magazine, females also read NME so I will make sure that my magazine is aimed at both genders. NME attracts many people as it deals with in depth information about music but also features some aspects of film. 

I looked at this magazine cover of NME featuring Morrissey as the cover star. I feel that this cover attracts a wider audience as it has Morrissey who is famous for his vocals in The Smiths and his solo work. Morrissey would attract a slightly older age who have been around longer whilst he may have been in The Smiths or just as he started his solo work. This cover also attracts a younger audience that are interested in Rock music as the lead singer of My Chemical Romance is featured as a cover line whilst underneath that cover line Arctic Monkeys are featured which would attract a younger audience that like Indie/Rock music. This big contrast in cover lines helps the magazine to appeal to a wider target audience and I may refer back to this when I come to create my own music magazine.

Organisation: Setting of my photos

I think I will take my photos at the factory where my band practice. I will take them with a variety of backgrounds. I may use a plain white wall for the front cover image and an image of the band 'playing'. I will take several photos of each of these things, then choose the best image. I think the plain wall is a good idea for my front cover because the reader will not concentrate on the setting of the image, but the band itself, who are of course the most important aspect of the image. I think an image of the band playing would be good because it would show the cover stars in action, and really show the reader what the band are about. The image against the wall will probably be a medium shot, possibly a close up so the image focuses on the expressions and image of the band. Props of instruments may be used.

Organisation: When and who will be in my photos

I have decided that I will definitely use my band as my cover star. I decided that this was the best thing to do because it is much simpler and easier to get the members together. It also helps that we are an actually band, so I don't have to worry about whether my cover stars look like an actual band. I will take my photos next week at band practice, or at our next gig.

Organisation: Props

I think I will keep props simple. I won't try and include too much in my photos, as I feel too many props would make the buyer concentrate on the props rather than the band. I think the only props I will use will be the instruments used in by the band members. The drummer, Seb, may just hold drum sticks while the other members hold guitars or whatever suits the picture and looks effective.

Target Audience: Survey Monkey

 I created a survey to see what people like. I have had 8 replies. 

This question is simply asking how old the person is. All 8 were between 0-17, which is unfortunate as I would have preferred a more varied group of people. I somewhat doubt any 1 year old completed the survey but you never know. 

This question was more successful as it shows an equal level of each gender. This is good as it means I get an accurate level of knowledge from both men and women. 

This question shows that indie rock is the most popular genre from this group of people, although alternative rock and britpop also claimed some gratitude. Whoever wrote pop has a different opinion to everyone else. I still think a britpop magazine would be a success. 

I asked about preferred music magazines, and the favourite is very clear. NME is by far the most popular so I would be stupid to do anything except a magazine that is similar to NME. It is clear that I should have a similar demographic to NME

There is also an overwhelming favourite on this question, as most of the people who completed the questionnaire would want to spend between £2 and £2.99 on a music magazine.

Organisation: Taking My Photos

I want a image similar to this one. Oasis are clearly a britpop band, and the four of them are wearing clothes that I would want me and my band members to wear. Sunglasses are an item many britpop figures have worn so I may choose for my band to wear them. The image fits the four band members in very well and the setting of the photo is effective, although I may choose to take my final photos inside, possibly at the location that we practise. 

Organisation: My Artist

I have decided that I will probably use the members of my real band as the cover artist, but probably change the name of the group. I have decided to do this because it is an easier option to trying to create a suitable britpop band. Unfortunately, my band aren't a britpop band, so I will attempt to make the members look a bit cooler. I may ask them to wear more appropriate clothes that have some link to the britpop genre. I have decided to take the photos sooner rather than later, so will do so in the next couple of weeks.

Organisation: Response to Feedback

From this tracker I can see that I am very consistent with Research into Similar Products and my Drafting. I have also been fairly consistent with my organisation. The area I need to improve in is target audience.

Research into Similar Products: Mojo Magazine

Here is a mojo magazine of The Beatles. I like the simple colours in the magazine, as it is mostly just black and white. The image is of all four beatles, but it's clear Paul takes centre stage and is the focus point of the picture and magazine, The cover is packed with articles with acts and other things. Exclamation marks are used to in an almost carnival like way to draw the readers attention. Words like exclusive and unseen are used on the magazine, which makes the reader want to find out these things that others don't know about. The magazine is just very appealing, as the colours, image and cover lines are all effective. 

Research into Similar Products: Analysis of Front Cover Focusing on Colour

This magazine front cover is fantastic. Apart from having not only Blur and Oasis in it but also Weller, it has a brilliant colour scheme amongst other things. This magazine is a classic, so the masthead and left third is different to the one that I will be designing , but other aspects of the magazine could be really useful when creating my own magazine. The use of the pug is great, as anyone would love to win a guitar. The main image, with the band Blur directly addressing the audience, is a medium shot of the band in their early days wearing very britpop like clothes, which suits the magazine and theme. There are two smaller images, one of Liam and the other of Weller, who are the two other artists on the front of the magazine. Although these aspects are great, the best in the colour scheme. On the big title saying 'britpop' the 'o' is the colours of the union jack which fits perfectly with the magazine as it is in fact about britpop as you may have guessed. The background is blue and the word 'blur' is in red with Damon's white jacket, which goes really nicely. I also like how all of the names of the artist and britpop have lower case letters, I think it makes the magazine seem really quirky

Drafting and Planning: Draft Contents and Double Page Spread

Here is my first draft double page spread. For this draft I decided to look at other magazines for help, as I found it difficult to picture what I wanted my magazine to look like. I decided to have a design easy to read. I decided to have a headline and text on one side with an additional section of text on the other side along with the image and one or two quotes. I think this is a good idea, but may be flawed. The continued text and quotes may get in the way of the image. I'm not sure if I will use this design for my final magazine. 

For my draft contents page I have decided to create a very simple design. I think that there will be an image of the artist/band opposite the information about the act, with possibly an arrow linking the writing to the image. I think I will do this because I feel it is essential that the reader knows what the artist looks like as it helps create an identity of the artist.  I quite like how it is settle as it is incredibly straight forward, maybe too straight forward. I feel that I may need to add some other features to make it more appealing, like a pug. Overall I think this design would work, but could be better.

Organisation: Response to blog feedback

I have learnt that I have done a good amount of research into similar products and drafting and planning, but I could work and complete more posts for target audience and organisation. In order to do this, I could discuss more about were my magazine will be aimed and how it will be organised. 

Organisation: ReMake ReModel: Peer Assessment Feedback

I have had my practice magazine that we created for our remake and remodel peer assessed. I have apparently used anchoring text well and completed a main cover story well. To improve I could manipulate the image to make it link in more with the main cover story, add cover star credit and make the cover stars the main focus.

Research into Similar Products: Analysis of Contents Page

I think this contents page is excellent, It is a double page contents which is effective as it allows various images on the page, instead of only one or two. The main image of the page is of Liam Gallagher. It is a close up, and Liam isn't looking at the camera. This shot just emphasises how cool he is. The image is similar to the shot on the front cover of the same magazine. Like on all the images, there is a large number with what page the article is on, making it easy for the reader to find where the article is on. Liam isn't the only big name on the content page, as there is images of Paul McCartney and Adele. A reader will open the magazine and see these stars and immediately be interested and want to buy the magazine. The colour scheme, like many, is red, white and black. This colour scheme seems to be by far the most popular. I really like this magazine because the layout is very effective and really advertises what the magazine has to offer, and has several images portraying the artists in the magazine. 

Drafting and Planning: Colour Scheme

The colour scheme of a magazine is very important. It helps distinguish the tone of the magazine, and helps it stand out from the crowd. Bright colours are excellent for my magazine standing out from the crowd, but I feel that bright colours are possibly slightly childish, especially seems as I want to aim my magazine at an older target audience. The colours red, white and black are often used for magazines, and I think I will do something similar. The colours go really well together and it is effective as it really stands out. The red has to be a fairly dark red though I feel.

Drafting and Planning: ReMake-ReModel

Here is my draft music magazine cover. I chose to base my magazine on the style of NME. I chose NME because it usually contains artists that I like, unlike most magazines. The NME masthead is shown on the left third, which is essential to attract customers. I used the colours red, white and black. I used  these colours because they are the colours I have witnessed most on NME magazines. I found that red and white stood out the most with my outside background, so I used those two colours more. However, I feel that my colour scheme is unorganized, as I don't have a certain colour theme to certain parts of my magazine. My main cover line contains alliteration and I think is successful. I feel that I am much better at the actual content of the magazine, compared to the designing aspect which is an area I need to work out. I have used made up quotes from the cover stars (myself and my brother) which help create a relationship between the reader and cover stars. I have also used direct address which also helps create a relationship. I have used various other cover lines with real artists, Noel and The Courteeners. The 'No you didn't, No you don't cover line is the name of one of The Courteeners songs, which I think is effective. I have used a pug that stands out and would attract the readers attention straight away. I have added a bar code, dateline and price, which are essential features of a magazine.
Overall, I think my cover is okay. The image is fine, but the background could be taken away. I planned to do so but when I tried I found it difficult so I decided to keep it there. I think the cover line text are good, but the actual design of the magazine is poor. I still feel I could improve vastly. I could have made the pug less commanding on the page and made the cover lines aligned. I could have eliminated one of the quotes.   

Drafting and Planning: Photos for Draft Magazine

Target Audience: Age Range

I feel that aiming my magazine at a certain age demographic is essential. If I try and aim it at too wide a group of people then it may be unlikeable. I don't want the magazine to be for people of a young age, because the genre of the music is BritPop, which is a genre that many people would have been keen on in the 90's. I think a suitable age range for my magazine would be from about 16-40, as I want it to be trendy and modern, but not something completely main stream, as the genre of music isn't one that is main stream in this day and age. I think that I will make a magazine mainly aimed at people between the age of 16 and 40. In order to do this, I must use sophisticated language and sustain a high level of interest.

Drafting and Planning: Names for Magazines

Many names of music magazine are simply one or a few letters, like Q or NME. However, I think I will have a word as the name for my music magazine. This word could be something to do with music as a whole, like 'Note' or 'Pianissimo', or it could be a name that is used when describing an instrument like a guitar, like 'Pick' or 'Strap'. I could also use something like 'E minor' or 'A major' which would be a good path to go down I feel.



I have conjured a new idea and have decided to call my magazine 'Scales and Arpeggios', which are two musical words about musical theory.

Drafting and Planning: Self Assessment

My codes and conventions task was critically analysed by another member of my class. I found that they have a higher opinion of my work than I do which is a plus. My peer told me that she enjoyed my cover lines and found them funny which was my intention so that is great, but I need to add more structure to my work, as at the moment it looks like I have 'just dropped the cover lines and let them float around'. I also need to improve my fonts, as I could use bigger bolder fonts. I feel I concentrated too much on the content of the cover lines, and didn't think about the actual font and size of font. I also need to make sure the date and price is visible, which may mean changing the colour or increasing its size. It was also suggested that I should use paint.net rather than publisher to complete my magazines. I'm not sure whether I will do this however, as I prefer publisher and find it easier to do. I found my feedback helpful, as it helped me understand my strengths and weaknesses. 

Organisation: Photos

I feel that the time where I need to start thinking about when and where I am going to start talking photos. I am yet to decide on the members of my britpop band, as I'm not sure whether to use the members of my actual band, or other friends. I think I will begin talking photos and thinking about suitable places to take them soon. I like the thought of having some photos inside and some photos outside. I like the idea of direct address in one photo, on the double page spread.

Drafting and Planning: Codes and Conventions Task

From this task I have learnt that simplicity is key. It has helped me distinguish a good magazine compared from a poor one.

Research Into Similar Products- Double Page spread

I think this double page spread is brilliant. The headline is a line of one of Bugg's songs which is a really clever pun. The colour scheme, well lack of colour, is an effective colour scheme, as the black and white creates an old fashioned like theme, which links to the artist as he is a 60's style singer songwriter. The black and white image adds an air of mystery about Jake Bugg, and the angle is a low angled shot, making him look important and formidable. The red really stands out on the page. I really like this magazine double page spread, with those colours being a real high point

Target Audience: Survey

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/BS2WG88

Response to Blog Feedback

I feel that my I did well on my similar products, as I have done 13. I think this is a good number. However, I have only done 1 for target audience, so it needs improvement. Also, I haven't done any for organisation so will need to start thinking about how I am going to organize. For drafting I have done 5, which I feel satisfactory. Overall, I feel that my work is okay.