Magazine Cover Review

Here is the cover of Mens Health. It is will be aspirational to some people as it tells on the front cover things like 'Drop 5KGS Now!'. This will attract men into their magazine with slogans like 'Double Muscle'. The target audience for the magazine is men in their 30's, as there are things like diet techniques on the front. 'Fitter, Leaner, Richer'. The magazine expects it's target audience to learn techniques to lose weight. It tells you on the front cover things like 'Press here for explosive sex!', 'Best foods for men'! These tell you things about private life, and how you can improve them.

Here is the Cosmopolitan front cover. This will be aspirational to some people, as it tells people to 'Love your Body'. These slogans make women attracted to the magazine. The target audience for the magazine is women in their 30's. It tells people a lot about losing weight such as :'Too fat? Your Body Demons'. Many women at this age are cautious about their weight. The values the magazine expects the readers to have is to improve their life. It tells you a lot about sex and how to improve it. The magazine is saying that you need to look at this, otherwise you are not normal.

The tone of the magazine is aspirational as there is vibrant colours, and a women staring at you. The target audience for this magazine is 18-20 year old women, you can see this with things like 'You=A*flirt!' A* referring to school grades. There are many things to do with school such as 'Celeb School Confessions', 'Classmates need to mop up my periods'. This can show that they want to teenage girls to grow up like this, with all the latest fashion, and have lots of glamour, and to gossip.

Here is the front cover of Attitude magazine. The cover is aspirational, as it is included with many things such as vibrant colours and a male celebrity on the front. The magazine is aimed at gay men. You can see this because it has a blue background aimed at men, however it says. 'Obsessed with a guy?'

FHM Editors Notes Review

Publication: FHM

Issue: February 2005

The standard model “guy” is a pretty straightforward being. When we tell our lady to shut her trap so we can watch some footie, it means just that. There are no hidden messages whatsoever. And it certainly does not mean, “Honey, now is the best time to talk about where this relationship is going.” But as we’ve stressed oh-so-many times in the pages of this very magazine, women on the other hand, are not so much into this business of being straightforward. The word “fine” for example, could mean a million and one things, and it is way better to have all your limbs chopped off by a mega-powered chainsaw than have a woman say the dreaded word to you.

So this month if your girl mutters, “We don’t really need to celebrate Valentine’s Day if you don’t want to,” don’t take it as your cue to jump for joy and spend all the cash on Star Wars Lego. Why? Because there is simply no chance in hell that she actually means it, plus it will take you forever to build one stupid Millennium Falcon.

If anything, it’s simply a test to see if you’re really the sensitive and caring dreamboat that you’ve been pretending to be, or if you’re just, well, a guy. So what do you do? If you really dig the chick – and third base is a great possibility – we recommend you sell all your worldly possessions and spend it all on that one special day. And to help your cause, we’ve got some pretty good V-Day gift ideas on pages 98 and 99. After all, third base is a pretty damn good thing.

Chatty and Informal.

Direct mode of address

Cosmopolitan Magazine Review

The Cosmopolitan Magazine has Jess Alba on the front cover. She is a famous model and celebrity. The magazine has put her on the front cover, to say that famous people like or read this magazine. This makes the readers think that the magazine is popular with famous celebrities, so it makes the person want to buy it. Jessica Alba is looking straight down the camera, so the reader will look right into her eyes. This makes the reader feel important, and they will want to buy the magazine. If the reader is looking at this, they think that they can become like this. When the magazine does this, they hope to attract more readers.

Direct address is used on the front cover of the magazine. The magazine is talking to you, and is making a direct address to your lifestyle. This Cosmopolitan Magazine says things like: 'Ways you're accidentally sexy',' Have you changed your bed sheets this week?',' Already in your Wardrobe',' How to find your orgasm every time'. This is used to make the reader feel as if this implies to them. It makes the reader feel as if they are the centre of attention. It makes the reader feel as if they can become like this if they want. When magazines do this, it has a massive effect on the target audience.

Introduction to Lifestyle Magazines

There are different types of content in magazines, such as: Health, Glamour, Marriage, Relationships, but mostly there are just adverts of perfumes, fashion and stores such as DFS. These all relate to women, and their lifestyles. When people look at this, it makes them feel that this is how a women should live. With things such as "Personal stylist party shoes, 10 ways to get happy, Marriage in crisis, sex drugs and yoga, love the skin your in, start losing weight." These are topics that appeal to women more than men, and are things that women want to have in their life such as good skin, losing weight, and acheive happiness in their life. 

The lay out of a lot of magazines are exactly the same. They usually have a woman, smiling happily at you on the front cover, in a bright coloured dress which you can buy at John Lewis for example. Either side of the woman there is writing of what you can expect inside the magazine such as things about how to keep your marriage together, and how to lose weight. They are set out in a tidy, orderly way, which is how women like everything. As you open onto the first page you get a double sided advertisement on perfume. Appealing to women. You turn the page and you get the contents page which explains everything interesting further. From then on you get a story, and then adverts until the end of the mag. From my analysis, the gender this appeals to more is women, especially in their mid thirties. This is because about then, women are usually getting married, and the age when they are concerned most about their weight. It tells women what should be most important to them.

Women would hope to benefit from buying this magazine, by hoping that it will change their perception of what they have to do in their life. They hope that it will keep their marriage together, and give them good tips on how to find men.

Album Cover Connotations

Here is Rihanna's album cover of Loud. On the cover is a close-up picture of Rihanna. She is wearing red lipstick, with dyed red hair. This could show that the album is vibrant and colourful, with up-beat songs. Red is associated with blood and war, so this could connote that the album is energetic. She is wearing ear rings as well to say that she is wealthy. The tattoo could also mean this. Her face is captured in a seductive way, meaning that is also being aimed, not just at teenage girls, but at man also.

Here is Emeli Sande's album cover of Our Version Of Events. Here there Emeli facing backwards from the camera and looking over her shoulder. It could mean that she is looking back at her past. On her back there are black roses, looking dead. This could mean that in her past there has been death. There is a dull blank background, possibly meaning that ahead of her there is still more sadness. Her hair is grey, but her face is young, meaning that she is feeling old and deprieved. She has cheap ear rings, meaning she does not have much money left. 

Here is Bruno Mars' album cover for Unorthodox Jukebox. Here there is an ape or gorilla, over an old and dilapidated Jukebox. In the background there is nothing, except a dull white background. The Gorilla seems to be standing up, which could mean that he looks stupid, but actually on the outside he is clever. However the Jukebox is old, which could mean that it is out of fashion, and not popular anymore. The gorilla could mean that people who listen to Jukebox's are stupid and old-fashioned.

Here we have Michael Buble taking off his tie with a orange background. He is looking very seductively away from the camera, and is taking off his tie. This could mean that he is looking at a women and fantasizing about her. I think that he is a womanizer and looking for a woman. The orange could give a happy atmosphere to the song.

Here there is Rod Stewart walking along a beach with a guitar. His Guitar could show his love of music. The way he is walking on a beach, could mean that it is a very relaxed album, with soothing songs. He is looking out to sea and that could mean that the sea to him is peaceful, or maybe he just likes the sea. The text of Rod Stewart's name, is in a very laid back sort of tone. He is dressed in a leather jacket, to show that he is cool or happy.

Here is Jake Bugg's album cover. It is a black and white picture, of him looking depressed. This could mean that he is sad in his life, and that the songs in the album are sad, and depressing as well. In the background there looks like the front of an old house. This could mean that he came from a poor background. He wearing a jacket to keep himself warm, suggesting that the feeling in his life is cold.

Here is the album cover for the Arctic monkeys album :AM. It is a piece of minimalist artwork, looking like a thing that measures sound waves. This could mean that they have an energetic sound to their music. There doesn't seem to be anything else in the background, so the album must just be about the music.

Here is Bastille's album cover for Bad Blood. Here there is a man running away on a road, being illuminated by car lights. This could mean that he does not like the people he is running from, meaning that he wants to get away from them. The background is in darkness, meaning that he is running from the light and into the dark.

Here is Daft Punks album called Random Access Memories. There is two half masks put together to look like one mask. There is nothing in the background, so it suggests that the album is just about them. The masks are shining, meaning that they are shining are the best. This can also give off the impression that they are rich due to the shining masks. The masks also look futuristic, which gives off the sense that they are a techno duo. 

This is the eponymous album of Rage Against the Machine. The cover shows a supposed man on fire, he doesn't look bothered about it so he is probably self-immolating. Self-immolation usually occurs when people are protesting about a certain subject. The band, Rage Against the Machine, are probably using this mans sacrifice to protest about a subject. This man was protesting about the way Tibet was run by the Chinese. RATM are probably using this to protest about the government. The picture is in black and white, which can give off a sad, melancholy vibe to the album.