Audience;
The genre of the Metal Hammer magazine is Heavy Metal, but also covers closely related genres such as Metal and Death Metal. Because of this, the target audience is most likely
going to be directed at the male sex, between the ages of 18 and 40. The expected psychographics would be Radicals or Underachievers. Their social values would be Materialists, Hedonists and/or Post Modernists. On the Jicnar scale, the target audience would be between C2 and E. Title;
The title 'Metal Hammer' is attractive to the target audience as the genre of the magazine is thrown out there, so any Metal fans would know straight away that this is the magazine for them. The font used within the title is a Seriff font, and is laid out oddly. The word 'Hammer' is stretched to fit the top of the magazine, whereas the word 'Metal' is placed vertically down the letter H. The colours used on the title are Black and Grey. This is typical for a Metal magazine, as they are dark colours which to some, connote evil and rebellion. However, in comparison to other magazines of any genre, this is unusual as most cover artists would prefer the name of the magazine to stand out from the background, as opposed to blending in.
Style&Photographs;
Throughout the magazine, simple contrasting colours are used to attract the audience. For example; Black, Red, White and shades of grey are used throughout. This is expected in a Metal magazine as all colours connote violence (as explained in the Detailed analysis of the Kerrang! Magazine.)
The layout of the magazine is also simple. The main sell is made clear via the large image of Dave Mustaine from Megadeth. From this, it is obvious that the mian sell has something to do with the band, although the article is not clear. This is unusual, as most magazines would wish to 'show off' the fact they have an artist to interview with. This suggests that the audience of the magazine will read the magazine whether they know whether it's a interview or a simple interview with the artist. Above the title, there's a list of bands; in this case; Metallica, Bodom, Crue, Dimmi, Opeth, Arch Enemy and Five Finger Death Punch.This would attract the readers, even if they are not a Megadeth fan, as they would possibly want to read about these bands instead.
The photograph of Dave Mustaine is staged, and is a photograph of him and his guitar. This is expected of a magazine as Metal bands tend to play instruments as well as sing. Behind the artist however, computerized effects are added on to make the clouds look like monsters from the explosion. Even though this is the first time I have come across this within the selection of magazines from my preferred genre, I really like this effect as it emphasises that the magazine is Metal genred, and sugegsts that the contents of the magazine, and the mode of address are going to be brutal and harshly written.
This is the contents page of the Metal Hammer magazine. The layout of the contents page itself is simple and it's obvious to the reader what the main sells of the magazine are, due to the images of the bands down the right hand side of the page (Marilyn Manson, Five Finger Death Punch, The 69 Eyes and Vince Neil. The Contents Page is also split down the middle of the articles. On the right hand side, there is features, which uncludes interviews with bands and band members, which are the images of the band/members from the far right. On the right hand side of the articles, there are regulars, which include 'access all areas', 'life stories' and 'behind the album' ect. I like this idea and believe it to be very effective, as it is simple to read and the idea of having a 'life story' for a new band member each month and a 'behind the album' of new releases is interesting and a safe way to keep the audience buying the magazine monthly. I will bear this in mind when producing my own magazine, as I believe this is a successful way to keep the target audience of a Metal magazine happy to buy it monthly.
Also, on the right hand side of the page, there is a message from the editor of the magazine. Unlike most messages from magazine editors, this does not give the typical 'welcoming' to the magazine. Instead, it gives reasons as to why they decided to use Dave Mustaine as their main sell of the magazine, and uses colloquial language when addressing the audience, such as swear words (it's a fucking stormer ect). This can be expected from a Metal magazine, as magazines such as these are published to interest metal fans and keep them updated with music, not to offer advice to the audience.
This is an example of a double page spread from the Metal Hammer magazine. It is an interview with the band members from Five Finger Death Punch and interviews them about many subjects, including the bands new album; War Is The Answer. The album explains the reason for the choice of clothes the band are wearing, as this reflects war like costumes. However, in other articles within the magazine, the featured bands wear dark clothing, typically black, and often band merchandise, whether it's their own to promote their new album etc, or other bands which they like. The font used within this article is simple to read, but the Masthead is thicker so that it stands out as opposed to the writing. The colour scheme here is simple; Black, White and Green. This makes it simple to read and gives the article an ancient look, which can be reflected in the new band album being promoted (War Is The Answer).
As the staged image takes up the majority of the page, it catches the eyes of the audience. Because of this, the interview leads on to another double page.
On the right hand side of this article, there is an unusual addition; ' Is The Death Punch Real?' Although it is suggested that this is not a monthly addition, I like the thought of getting more information from interviewed bands such as this, and will bear it in mind when creating my magazine.
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