The Foreword - An Initial Overview of my AS Media Studies Coursework

The coursework component of my AS level course in Media Studies requires me to produce a front cover, contents page, and double page spread, for a music magazine. All elements submitted as part of said piece must be 100% my own work, including any photographs, and writing. An additional requirement of this coursework, is to keep a blog, as a running commentary on my progress, including BTS, my time management capabilities, photos, videos, and all sorts of other cool things like that. Apparently, I also need to write about the fact that I'm required to keep a blog, on my blog - how meta.

My magazine will focus primarily on the UK Pop Punk/Alternative scene, with nods, and/or lesser mention given to international bands, or other music of interest.

I have prior knowledge of the scene, as I would consider myself part of it, regularly attending local shows, buying merch, and listening to smaller bands who are struggling to gain attention. I am active in several Facebook groups, and regularly talk to some smaller bands on Twitter, and occasionally Instagram.


Some examples of bands that I interact with on Twitter:

Best Years - Manchester

Highlives - Bristol

Montrose - Bristol

Shortside Avenue - Sunderland

Larkhill - London

Hindsights - Berkshire

Additionally, the band Roam used to follow me (before they got too famous), and I've had numerous interactions with bands such as Boston Manor, Trash Boat, and As It Is.

Pop Punk tends to be a genre with a lot of stereotypes, and conventions, including themes of friends, hometowns, summer, pizza, etc. Examples of stereotypical clothing also include, tie-dyed shirts; crewneck sweaters; beanies; baseball caps; and khaki shorts. Many bands have been known to reference these stereotypes ironically, as a sort of introspective humour (for example, US bands Man Overboard, and The Wonder Years). 

Additionally, YouTube comedian Jarrod Alonge tends to utilise these stereotypes within his work, in order to appeal to that demographic/target audience, particularly in his video Every Pop Punk Vocalist, and his music under the name Sunrise Skater Kids, which includes such lyrics as "I've got my best friend in the front seat, and my pizza in the back; seven pairs of khaki shorts, and stickers for my mac."

The genre is most typically enjoyed by teenagers, or people in their early twenties, particularly those who grew up with that kind of music in high school. As the 'punk' portion of the name suggests, there are often heavy themes of rebellion, or the idea of being outcast, and misunderstood - especially by parents, or figures of authority. There's also a large focus on camaraderie, and friendship: supporting the scene, and being kind to one another. Artists within the genre, or scene, tend to be more active on social media than some more commercial artists, for example, and have been known to go to extreme lengths to give back to their fans. British band Enter Shikari, in particular, are very vocal about their hatred of paid 'meet and greet' packages, and have devised all sorts of inventive ways of interacting with listeners. For example, when their most recent album The Mindsweep was released, they set up a 'pop-up shop' in Camden, and stayed there for almost an entire day: meeting people, signing things, taking photos... even just having general conversation.