The contents page for Kerrang! is one page. Immediately from a glance at this cover page we can see that it is well laid out and structured, with three paragraphs. We can also see that the house style continues into the contents page through the use of fonts and the colours red, yellow, white and black. The pag numbers are coloured red, whereas the majority of text is coloured black. This is effective as the numbers are very easily found and clear to see meaning that the reader can quickly see which page to go to for a certain article. The background has been coloured white which makes the magazine look very organised and sophisticated. This is important as this would appeal to their target audience and makes it easier to follow. The continuity is very clear from the cover, contents page and presumably the rest of the magazine. The use of the same fonts as those on the cover adds to the continuity and sophistication of the whole magazine as well as improving the overall aesthetics. Similarly to the cover, the colours used are quite gender neutral so this will appeal to everyone. There isn't a good representation of gender on the contents page in terms of images, as none of the images include females.
In the top left corner the issue number and cover date is displayed. In the top right corner the title is displayed in a black circle. Underneath it states, "it's only 30 days until Download! Oh em gee!" The use of text language here indicates that this magazine is for a younger age group.
On this page there are 7 different images. This page includes most of the artists that were plugged on the front cover, however there are different artists also plugged on the contents page. This is effective as it appeals to a wide range of people and broadens the magazine's potential audience. There are three images relating to articles and four relating to different segments of the contents page. The images relating to articles all have a large white page number on them making it very easy for people to find the related articles. The image are all different sizes making the page seem less uniform and boring.
On the contents page, the main image is not of Jared Leto or 30 Seconds to Mars, but instead Alice in Chains. It is placed in the top left side and immediately draws the reader’s attention. This would be done to attract readers as this is a well known artist in the genre and would appeal to a large number of people. In this image, some of the band are looking into the camera, whereas others are not. The picture is also taken at a low angle, giving the band an atmosphere of superiority over the reader. I don't like this effect as the picture doesn't look very inviting and wouldn't entice me to read the article.
The contents page is split into 8 different sections. The headings are coloured yellow in a black strip. This makes them very distinguishable for ease of navigation. The language used to speak to the reader shows a certain amount of respect for them as the writing assumes a certain level of knowledge, such as the shortening of the name of the band, You Me At Six, to YMAS. However it is evident in the language that this magazine is aimed at someone younger such as, "Jared blasts off again. Next stop... love!" and "JESSE LEACH IS BACK! JESSE LEACH IS BACK! AHEM. JESSE LEACH IS BAAAAAACK!" These types of sentences wouldn't be seen in a magazine targeted towards an older age group, but the are suitable for Kerrang!'s demographic. The language used is exciting and entice the reader to read on, particularly with the use of humour, such as, "Ozzy Osbourne remembers that he left the oven on" and "This week, we find out what's on Ville Valo's shelves! Some pretty weird stuff turns out..." This type if language would be enticing to the reader as it is entertaining to read.
Overall on the contents page, over 20 different artists are plugged, many of whom weren't on the cover page. Again, this is very effective as it appeals to many different people with different preferences within the rock genre.
Overall I think this piece is very appealing as it is well structured and clear to follow which are important aspects of a contents page. It also contains a lot of information which is useful as readers can get an idea of all of the artists included in this issue. The informal and exciting writing style gives the magazine a friendly and lighthearted tone, which is appealing to readers. This contents page is not only aesthetically pleasing but it is also practical and clear to follow. However in my own contents page I would like to use a wider range of colours to highlight specific aspects of the page. These are all things that I will consider when I am planning my own contents page.
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