Textual Analysis cover page - Bass

Textual Analysis

‘Bass’ magazine is a magazine based solely on guitars and musicians. It is part of a collection of magazines such as ‘Acoustic’ and ‘Drummer’ which are also music magazines but they each specialize in a different area such as drumming.

The magazine front cover is extremely bright and bold; it has a large masthead, which is ‘bass’, and the white colour contrasts the red and stands out. There is a large image of ‘Bootsy Collins’, which is extremely loud and eccentric, therefor it will catch the consumer’s eye as he is wearing bright colours and a lot of shiny items. Also there are multiple cover lines situated around the image that are quite dull and contrast the bright background.

The cover is aesthetically pleasing, especially to the target market because of the bold colours on display. The main colours are yellow and red which are very loud so it therefor stands out and appeals to a teenage or young adult audience. I think they chose to use bright colours to represent the issue as the musician on the front cover (Bootsy Collins) is a bold character so the colours link with him.

The main cover line reads ‘interviewed Bootsy Collins, schools out at Funk University!’ this links with the main image and also identifies the target audience. As the issue is based on that individual guitarist it could narrow their audience as some people may not like his style as he comes across really bold and extravagant. All other cover lines are based on guitars and musicians so the magazine is clearly only aimed at an audience with an interest in guitars. Cover lines are mostly written in capitals and all are in bold, this makes them easy to read and stand out so customers can clearly see what’s inside the magazine. The fonts used are quite dull and also the colours are bland but that is so it easy to read and doesn’t clash with the bright colours in the background.  The cover lines will appeal to the target market, for example ‘top players interviewed’ this will definitely appeal because if you are interested in bass guitars you are going to be interested in the best players.

The selling line is ‘the UK’s number one bass guitar magazine’ which is positioned at the top so it Is clear to see and therefor can increase sales for the magazine. Also, placed at the very top is an advertisement for a competition which will appeal to customers as it is a prize that is relevant to the target market.

Overall I think the cover is good, the bright colours will stand out and attract the target market, and also the image of Bootsy Collins will attract some customers. The masthead is clear and bold so it enables people to see which magazine it is and the cover lines stand out so people can easily read them.