[MP] Technical Analysis of Advertisement

The Charlatans Forever. The Singles.

Genre
The alternative rock genre of the artist is evident in this advert, with the messy hair and neutral if slightly contempt looks on the faces of the band members. This has connotations of being a rebellious youth and not conforming to mainstream society. 


Furthermore the band members are in black and white with the contrast turned up to max. This doesn't give a particularly glossy look, contributing to the imperfect style of the genre.


Media Language
The rule of thirds is not followed entirely by this advert. The title of the album is placed in the top left corner but I feel that it is too small and insignificant to be a strong start for the dominant reading path. The lead singer is centred on the upper third line and is larger than the rest of the band members which gives him dominance on the page and placing the start of the reading path with him. The path then moves straight downwards to the smallest figure on the advertisement. Although the size of an image on a page often determines how obvious it is, this figure is set in proud contrast to the white space around him giving the eye a new point to move onto. The reading path now ends in the bottom left corner with the detail of the album contained in a large lump of text. This reading path is quite abnormal, and continues to further the alternative rock metanarrative of the band.


On another point, the text is presented in white, creating a strong contrast to the black upon which it is placed. This does increase the importance of the text in the advert somewhat, as it is obviously needed to let the audience know what the album is. The album title is also at the top of the page, awarding it more importance than the contents of the album, which are detailed at the bottom of the page.


The album title 'The Charlatans Forever. The Singles.' shows that the album is an amalgamation of their singles onto a one album. Singles albums are released once a band has been around for a long time. The extra word 'Forever' on the end of the band name implies perhaps that they may not be recording any more music or are breaking up but still wish that they are remembered by their fans.


Representation
The band are here represented as impulsive, contemptuous people. The looks on their faces seem to look down at the audience slightly, placing them with a higher power than the audience. The sudden splashes of colour give their impulsive side, set in sudden opposition to the black and white advert. In Dyer's terms, the band is present in this advert. This ensures that the audience have an image of the band for consumption and for the continuation of completion of the bands' image. On the other side, the band are also absent by being edited into black and white with excessive contrast. This removes a lot of detail from the faces of the band members giving incoherence to their image. 
Institution and Audience
This advert would be consumed through the EMI magazine as this is where it was obtained. However it would also be consumed in high street shops and on the internet, as it is the image used for the front cover of the album that it is advertising. The image would also become familiar to the audience in this way, reinforcing the association of the image with the band.