advert

Hannah Ram - 4730

THE ENEMY MAGAZINE ADVERTThis poster emulates a train station timetable, which ultimately emphasizes the name of the album ‘We’ll live and die in these towns’, as it is linked to the idea of leaving a town or city. This idea is reinforced by the text at the bottom of the advert as it says ‘arriving’, which again has connotations of a train timetable board. This idea, like Indie music itself, is quite anti-mainstream and would therefore, appeal to The Enemy’s target audience.

In this advert the band members are not shown, despite the fact that it an advertisement for their debut album. This could be perhaps because they want to be taken seriously as musicians and want people to focus on the music rather than their image, or it could have been done to reflect that anti-mainstream ideology that characterises the Indie genre.

The font used for the name of the band is quite simple, but it stands out because it is in yellow. This suggests that The Enemy are quite a simple band in the sense that they focus simply on their music rather than mainstream gimmicks. The yellow font used could perhaps signify that as a band they stand out from the all of the other Indie bands on the market. Moreover, the use of yellow and white font on a black background makes the advert quite eye-catching.

The font style, colours and background used in this magazine advert is replicated on the album cover, billboard posters and the tour date posters, which helps to create a brand identity for the band.

There is also a connection between the album cover, magazine advert and the music video for their song ‘We’ll Live and Die in These Towns’ as in all thee the backgrounds are quite dark (on the album cover and magazine advert the background is black and the music video is set at night so there is dark lighting). Also in the music video includes lots of shots of road signs, which links to the train timetable format of the advert and album cover as they both refer to travelling to a different town or city. Ultimately, both the music video and the album cover and advert are all quite simple, which creates an image that they are normal people that their target audience can therefore, relate to.

The text at the bottom also says ‘featuring the hit singles...’, which is likely to make audiences want to buy the album as it suggests that they are quite a well known and popular band.

THE ENEMY MAGAZINE ADVERT CONT.

Tour Poster

Album Cover

Billboard Advertisement

KAISER CHIEFS MAGAZINE ADVERT

There is an obvious connection between the album cover and the magazine advertisement as the advert contains a pack-shot of the album cover. This could have been done so that when their target audience goes into a music shop it will be easy for them to identify the album and buy it. Also, much like The Enemy’s album cover and advert, the Kaiser Chiefs use a bright colour like yellow on a dark background to make their product stand out.

The same typography is used for the word ‘Employment’ on both the album cover and the magazine advert in order to help their target audience make the connection between the advert and their album.

The Kaiser Chiefs do not appear in this advert for their album. This could possibly be because by the time that this album was released the band was already well known and established, so they didn’t necessarily need to appear in the advertisement as their target audience already knew who the band members were.

The whole advert has a late 1970s and early 1980s feel to it, as the font and layout is arguably quite dated because it is reminiscent of the style of old advertisements. Furthermore, the pack-shot in the centre of the advert has connotations of old vinyl records, which is reinforced by the worn looking edges of the album cover. This is then therefore, a way for the Kaiser Chiefs to subtly incorporate a reference to their musical influences that were famous in the early 1980s; by doing this they create an image of themselves as being an authentic, anti-mainstream, Indie group that is aware of how and when Indie music developed. This image would appeal to their target audience as it highlights that they are aware of their roots and take their music seriously, which would appeal to their target audience as it shows that they aren’t just another manufactured band.

KAISER CHIEFS MAGAZINE ADVERT CONT.

This tag line gives the album a mass appeal by suggesting that there is something for everyone in the album. By including this text on their album cover and poster it highlights that the Kaiser Chiefs are aware that Indie music is now becoming much more mainstream and it therefore, allows them to appeal to the widest audience possible.

The phrase ‘Does exactly what is says on the box’ is an intertextual reference to the phrase ‘It does exactly what is says on the tin’, which is a popular phrase in the UK that originated from advertisements for woodstain in the early ‘90s. This adds a slight bit of comedy to the advert, which according to XFM’s audience research is a ‘key interest’ to the Kaiser Chief’s potential target audience.

Album Cover

The music videos for ‘Every Day I Love You Less and Less’ and ‘Oh My God’ also include retro mise-en-scene (e.g. wallpaper in the former and costume in the latter), which reinforces the image of the Kaiser Chiefs being an authentic Indie band that has musical influences from the past. Thus, there is a connection between the album cover, magazine advert and some of the music videos for songs contained in this album.

STEREOPHONICS MAGAZINE ADVERT

The band are shown in this magazine advert in order to establish their image and brand identity. The mise-en-scene used in this advert highlights that they are an Indie band, as their attire is reflection of the conventional Indie style of clothes (leather jackets and blazers) therefore, their target audience will able to relate to them, as they will wear similar clothing themselves. Thus, this then creates the image that the Stereophonics are a cool and relatable group. Also, the majority of the band members are looking away from the camera in this shot, which suggest that they are a laid-back band that are not overly confident or arrogant - this idea is reinforced by the fact that they do not dominate the shot.

The album name ‘KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON’ is an intertextual reference and historical allusion to the WWII poster used by the British government. Since 2000 the phrase has somewhat come back into mainstream use and by using it as their album name they are reflecting the new mainstream popularity that Indie music is attracting. This will therefore, appeal to their target audience as it reflects their mainstream desires and attitudes. Furthermore, the font style that the album name is written in emulates the font style of the WWII poster, which reinforces the intertextual reference to the poster.

The typography used for the band’s name is quite clear and simple which reflects the idea of the album title of being ‘calm’, as the font is clear and easy to read. Also the use of the bold font and underline grabs the audience’s attention straight away. Similarly, the fact that all the text is written in capital letters also helps them to get their target audience’s attention.

Like the other magazine adverts that I have analysed this advertisement contains all the relevant details on how to obtain their album in a clear and concise way, in order to get the message to their audience in the quickest way possible.

Furthermore, the background image of this advert would immediately grab their target audience’s attention as it is quite comical and unusual and would thus, stand out from the other adverts in the magazine.

The paralanguage created through the use of this image suggests that the Stereophonics are an interesting band that like to stand out from the crowd. This would therefore, help them to reinforce their band’s image.

STEREOPHONICS MAGAZINE ADVERT

War poster issued by the British Government during the beginning of WWII to raise the morale of the British public in the case of invasion.

ALBUM COVER

There is a very strong connection between the album cover and the magazine advertisement as the same picture is used as a background in both of the media products. The font style and colour used on the album cover is also replicated in the magazine advert, which helps establish a brand identity for the band as audience’s will be able to recognise this picture as being to do with the Stereophonics.

STEREOPHONICS MAGAZINE ADVERT

SCREENSHOTS TAKEN FROM THE STEREOPHONICS MUSIC VIDEO FOR ‘INNOCENT’

After watching the music video for the song ‘Innocent’ by the Stereophonics it became clear that there was a strong connection between the album cover and the music video, as within the music video there are historical allusions to the ‘KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON’ World War One poster (as shown by the screen grab on the left) that gives the Stereophonics album its name; this therefore, creates an immediate link between the two media products.

Furthermore, the band is shown performing in the middle of a street that is holding a massive street party. The clothing that they are wearing during this performance is quite similar to the clothing that they are wearing in the magazine advert and album cover (e.g. dark jeans, leather jackets and blazers), which again creates a connection between the music video and the advert.

MANIC STREET PREACHERS MAGAZINE ADVERTThe typography used throughout this advert is reminiscent of the type of writing you get when using a stencil; there are two possible reasons for this:

• Firstly, this stencil-like font has connotations of, retro, 1980s England, which would ultimately appeal to the Manic Street Preachers’ target audience because it gives the band an air of authenticity by showing that they are aware of when Indie/Alternative music started.

•Secondly, the disjointed and broken lettering could be a reference to the fact that since their band member Richey Edwards vanished the band are no longer a complete group, despite the fact that they are still together.

This magazine advert contains three reviews from magazines and newspapers. Both ‘Q’ and ‘NME’ are magazines that Indie/ Alternative music fans would either read or know of, so they would therefore, trust their review of the album. Moreover, ‘The Times’ is likely to appeal to their slightly older target audience who may have been fans of the band since their formation in 1986. Thus, by including these reviews the Manic Street Preachers are instantly attracting their target audience by highlighting their popularity and success in the music industry.

The mise-en-scene used in this magazine advert has connotations of the 1970s and 1980s. For example, the Polaroid camera and the rocker hairstyle (slicked back quiff) all have retro connotations. Furthermore, the advert is in black and white, rather than colour, which again has connotations of old-fashioned and retro photography. (Also by making the magazine advert black and white it is more likely to grab the reader’s attention, as it will immediately contrast with the full colour spreads found in magazines). Thus, the mise-en-scene used will meet the Manic Street Preachers’ target audience’s needs and desires by creating the image that the band is an authentic, anti-mainstream group, that is aware of the roots of Indie/Alternative music.

This advert also contains the band’s website details and the record label's logo.

MANIC STREET PREACHERS MAGAZINE ADVERT

ALBUM COVER

As with the Stereophonics, there is clearly a connection between the magazine advert and the album cover, as the same picture and font is used in both. However, there is one obvious difference between the two and that is the layout of the picture, as in one the man is on the right hand side and in the other he is in the centre.

Unlike all of the other adverts that I have analysed so far, this is the first advert that explicitly refers to downloading song through iTunes. This reflects the changing methods of media consumption and is more likely to appeal to their target audience than details of what format you can purchase the song in, as teenagers and young adults are now choosing to download music rather than buy a physical copy of it.

The band do not appear in this magazine advert for their album ‘Postcards From A Young Man’; this could possibly be because they are a really well known band so their target audience will already know who they are and what they stand for, therefore, they do not need to appear in the advert in order to establish their image.