Mixmag is a British elecrtonic dance and clubbing magazine, which has its headquarters in London. The magazine which has been launched in 1982 covers the newest dance events, hottest music and club night reviews. When first issued, Mixmag was in a newsletter format however when house music began, the editor and DJ Dave Seaman turned the magazine to a DJ's magazine covering a variety of dance music, introducing the magazine to a club culture. Mixmag was then later sold to EMAP ( mid 1990s), and nextly bought by Development Hell. The magazine's target audience are 12-24 year old males and females with clubbing interests. The ideology of this magazine which makes it rather different than other magazines on the market, is that it focuses on one genre of music making the magazine very specific. Therefore it can be used as a guide by the audience which trusts the magazine.
Front Cover:
The first thing that our eye catches is the bold masthead 'MIXMAG'. The font used for this specific title is very curvy and looks modern, which reflects the genre the magazine is about. In comparison to other magazines as for example New Musical Express, the title of this magazine is spread across the width of the page and presents the full brand name, not an acronym. As a result of this, the title can be easily read from a far distance when the magazine is on a newstand in the shop which catches our attention. Additionally the factor which makes the masthead rather attractive is its simplicity in form and colour. The title does not contain any fancy graphics however it only presents the name in solid white colour. By this the title creates contrasts against the other visible images or text on the front cover. However I have noticed one similarity which is used in a variety of magazines, not only music magazines, which is the masthead being covered up by an image. This is used because the magazine is well known and does not need its full name to be shown in order for the customer to recognize it, so they prefer to make the person or object in the main image stand out by overlaying it.
The main cover line in this instance has been placed in the middle of the canvas in what looks like a rectangular graphic shape. The font used for this has been specifially chosen to be sharp and squared to make the text stand out, however the black fill of the graphic shape has brought the text even further onto the foreground as of the contrast these two objects create. The text 'SUB FOCUS' is the name of a famous electronic music producer which is pretty famous in United Kingdom. The text has been placed underneath the image of Sub Focus himself, which automatically connotates to us that it he is the main focus of this issue. Looking at the rest of cover lines we can see that they are spread around the page whether flush left or flush right. This has been done by purpose not to affect the image by having any text over it, leaving it as clear as possible for the audience to see. We can see that similar to the main cover line, the cover lines at the sides have a similar black background. This makes them look very abstract which reflects the modern audience and music type, but additionally present the text clearer as again the contrast is very strong against the bright text. On the other hand, we can see that towards the bottom right corner of the magazine we have a second type of information which is more interesting/important for the audience. This is easily seen as the information is showed by a thin, lower case letters or by the information having a white background with black text inside it and additionally labelled as 'PLUS'.
Same as on the NME magazine which I have analysed earlier we can see that the barcode has been placed in the exact same place, however in this case it has been positioned horizontally. Barcode is needed on each issue of magazine as by this it can be scanned onto the database of the shop. It is a essential detail that the magazine has to contain, otherwise the sale of this magazine would not function properly. Additionally the barcode contains key information about the magazine such as the date or price.
Apart from the masthead which is very visible, we can see a header right on top of it stating " The Worlds Biggest Dance Music And Clubbing Magazine". By the header being positioned on top of the masthead we as readers automatically spot it when looking at the title of the magazine. The language used in the header is very persuasive, which as a result persuades the audience to buy it as to them the magazine is seen as value for money. Additionally, by the header describing the magazine in such way we as an audience view the magazine as prestigious which again could lead to a higher consumption.
The centre of visual interest on the front cover of this magazine is definitely the main image. It is set to bleed with the margins, filling up the whole page. As a result of that we are not presented any negative space, which makes the magazine look more attractive and professional. The effect which has been applied to the image makes it look like as if it has been lit up by multiple-colour lights which reflects the image of clubbing which the magazine is based on. Additionally, the image is very bright which can be linked to the lights dance clubs use which reminds us about the dance setting. On the other hand, the person in the image which is Sub Focus himself, has his head positioned in a way that makes him look as if he is looking down at the main cover line saying his name. This shows us that he is aware of his stage name being know worldwide.
Double Page Spread:
The first thing which catches our attention on this double page spread are the 5 images. Each image represents a party setting. On three of the images we can see people smiling, dancing or even making peace hand gestures which symbolizes to us that they are having fun and ejoying themselves. As a result, we as a audience think positively about clubbing and think that it is a good option to choose. The image on the far bottom right presents a POV image which shows a closeup of a young adult dancing. By the image being taken form a point of view perspective, it makes us seem as if we are there on the dancefloor when looking at the image which makes us more interacted with the magazine. Furthermore, this image is slightly blurry which signifies to us that the person is still in motion when the image was taken. Concluding, I think that the biggest picture on the left is the CVI on the double page spread as of its size. As an addon we can see that all of the images have a callout written on each of them, presenting the quote of one of the people who were present in that exact party.
The overall layout of the double page spread is very well thought out. The level of text and images is balanced making the double page spread more interesting for the audience. The colum gutter between the columns gives them a suitable level of space which allows the reader for easy reading. Additionally the sans serif text is very simple allow the reader for fluent and error-less reading. By the text being black against a white background it creates a very high contrast which again allows for easy reading as the colours work well together.
The header "The Big 3" which introduces us to the page is written in a fancy font style which follows the style of the font used for the masthead of the magazine. The header is additionally placed against a black background and is surrounded by a thick white outline. By this, the header stands out on the page in front of the images and text making us spot it and acknowledge what it is about. Other than the "The Big 3" text we have additional text underneath stating "The best parties of the last month". This is considered as the caption as it explains to us what the title means. Bringing out the "The Big 3" text we can see that it can be backed up by the three big images which appear on the double page spread showing the best three parties of the last month.
Subheadings visible on this page such as "Party Maison" or "Scouse house" have been written in a bold font which is easily seen against the simple background. By this the titles are emphasised and therefore brought to the front against the other text on the page. Additionally by their side we can see retro-looking numbers which number the nightclubs from 1 to 3 in terms of their rating. By this retro font Mixmag adds onto the party theme the magazine is about and additionally refer to the time when this music genre was started. Right above the subheading we have the address of the clubs written in small text however it has been highlighted using a yellow colour. Yellow has not been used anywhere else on the page, therefore it makes the small text very easily seen. As a result the reader can acknowledge where this club is placed and might record it for his own personal use.
A exclusive feature which I have not seen in any other magazine other than this is the "Need to know" column. This column presents to us the key information about the club or about a tour. This benefits the reader as he/she is told the latest facts around the specific genre or is told beneficial information about the venue he/she is reading about. Pink colour has been used to make this column stand out on the page, to be exact its heading has been filled in with pink. Pink represents energy therefore it relates to the energetic dance music, however by pink being used it attracts the target audience as the information is bright and eye-catching.
When we as a reader skip to the content page, the first thing that catches his sight is the main image on the page. The image represents a woman dancing in a nightclub, wearing a bikini top which represents her in a flirtatious way. By this, the magazine can gain a higher consumption from the male audience as they will be automatically attracted to the content presented by her. The woman is very clear in the image however we can see that the background is rather blurred which combined with her dancing body language tells us that she is having fun, reinforcing the idea of enjoying the time spent in a night club. At the bottom of the image, we can see a rather large page number being placed in solid white colour. The page number tells us that the content which is presented by the image can be found on page 109. Furthermore, if we have a closer look we can see a callout being placed under the page number. This explains to us what type of content can be found on the page. This benefits the reader as by this they are easily presented what the magazine consists of and skip to the page which interests them.
On the top right hand side of the main image we can spot the title of the page. It has been placed there by purpose as by it being at the top it creates a introduction to the page. When turning the page the first thing we see is the top right corner of the page underneath, therefore this information is presented to us in the first place telling us that this is the contents page that we are looking at. The text "Contents" has been surrounded by a black box. A similar use of a black box can be seen on the double page spread of the magazine, meaning that the magazine carries a consistent corporate image throughout its pages for the audience to remember their style. Also "Content" has been written in yellow filled text which coming back to the double page spread was only used for marking out valuable content. This means that by the use of the yellow, Mixmag has told the readers that the content their magazine consists of is very valuable and they want to show it by emphasising it.
On the bottom of the content page we have a section dedicated to "Your Free CD". It can be clearly seen that it has been selected out of the canvas as it has been divided from the rest using a thick black line. The text "Your Free CD" has been placed in the yellow section of the line which again reflects its importance to the magazine same as the content. The columns below the line talk about the CD you gain with the magazine as well as presenting the track listed one by one. A free sample has been a favourite amongst various music magazines. By this the audience is more likely to purchase the magazine as they feel that they not only pay for the magazine but they gain back something from it, which improves their self esteem.
The overall layout is pretty simple however it is very effective. The magazine is sorted into sections which makes it very easily understandable not only by its target audience, but by anyone who picks up the magazine. The large amount of negative space makes the content page very simple and plain which allows the text to be easily seen, improving its clarity. In my opinion the editors of the magazine have done this by purpose, making the magazine look very professional and well thought out.
Lastly, we can see the index of the features which can be found on the page which is positioned flush right on the page. The subheadings of each topic are written in a bigger, bold font whereas their description is written beneath them in a thin, slightly smaller font. By this we are attracted by the subheading and then the topic is explained to us via the caption. The page numbers are written in the same font that has been used for "Contents" title. Its style is pretty curvy giving them a slight retro look which as well represent the funky mood which can be found in the night clubs. However, the main purpose of this font being used is to achieve a clear understanding from the audience as to where the content is placed.
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