MOJO magazine frontcover analysis

• Masthead is behind cover photo, this connotates that mojo are a well-known magazine brand that do not need their readers to see the name at the fore front of every issue. Their house style should be enough to give away what magazine it is that the customer is buying. Although on the contrary to this, MOJO seem to dictate their style issue to issue. One month’s mag will be completely different to the next as they base their cover style upon the cover photo itself. This is a very unconventional way to design any magazine, let alone one as well known and popular as MOJO.
• Nearly all plugs are either flush left or flush right and seem to fit around the cover photo and cover lines. This is emphasises the band and what the article about them contains.  This is done to intrigue the customers and make it stand out on the shelves of a shop. Had the cover line been behind the free CD, or partly been covered, any potential demographics would be lost. The band’s name has to dominant to advertise this magazine else it will lose sales thus lose money.
• ‘the music mag’ puff over mast head but behind cover photo again connotates just how well known this magazine is. The
• Running head is full of plugs that are not all set in the same genre as Nirvana, this provides the readers with a wider variety of music to read about but also shows to potential buyers that this is a cross genre magazine. So although the cover photo is of a well-known grunge band, this entire magazine will not be of the same genre. They are subconsciously proving to us that ‘There is something for everyone here’
• Only 3 colours used (within convention.) although these colours don’t seem to relate to the cover photo is a defining way, it would be wrong to say they do not compliment it. Red is heavily used, which has a direct link to ‘Kurt Cobains last stand’ and to his death as red is generally associated with blood and all things morbid.
•  Demographic for this mag is a hard one to decide on, as I’ve already said the style seems to vary from issue to issue. Although I would aim it at the ages of 20 – 35 as it seems to be quite a well written and sophisticated magazine in comparison to mags like kerrang! I would also like to think this is a cross gender magazine as the content varies from rock bands all the way through to some dream pop artists.
• Denotations- Nirvana, wearing jeans, tucking in shirt or jumpers, looking like average working men. Not all that happy in facial expression. Cobain at front, then Grohl and then Novoselic. (Descends in height order.) Kurt Cobain’s jumper has holes down the front of it Connotations - their expressions show they’re anger and unhappiness with life and the obvious use of direct eye contact almost seems to put that blame upon us. In continuation it seems as though they feel they’re stuck within society’s borders, this is a viable observation as they are dressed in a reasonably smart and dignified way, yet they are a grunge band, well known for their lack of care about how society should be governed. To reinforce that point further still, the holes in Cobain’s jumper show his lack of care or worry about how he is seen.