Capital Radio To Launch New Monthly Music Title
Capital Radio is coming together with Sleazenation to launch a new monthly magazine into the music sector.
Xfm’s contract title, X-Ray, is being redesigned and given national news-stand distribution. The new-look magazine will be aimed at 18-30 year-old new music lovers and will have an initial print run of 90,000.
Priced at £2.50, each issue will be covermounted with a CD featuring a compilation of tracks from Xfm’s playlist. The station’s managing director, Graham Bryce, believes the title will fill a gap in the market. He said: “There is no offering at present that fully reflects the diversity of credible new music regardless of genre and does so in an intelligent, authentic and passionate, yet accessible way.”
He added: “X-Ray will fully reflect the positioning and ethos of the Xfm brand and will support and complement Xfm’s development as London’s leading new music station and its expansion into a national radio station and youth music brand.”
It is understood that Richard Sutcliffe, publishing director of Swinstead Publishing, which owns Sleazenation and Jockey Slut, will edit the title. He said: “There is currently a gap in the music sector between NME and Kerrang!, and at the top end with Q and Mojo. With high production values and a fresh approach to music coverage, X-Ray will be the magazine of choice for young people who appreciate cutting-edge music, quality design, beautiful photography and credible writing.”
X-Ray was initially launched over two years ago as a free quarterly fanzine for Xfm listeners, available in record and clothing stores.
ABC data for the six months ending June 2002 paint a relatively stable picture of the music magazine sector, which saw circulation increase year on year. Emap’s niche-market heavy metal favourite Kerrang! was the sector’s biggest mover with a 60% year on year increase, bringing its total circulation to 83,988 (see ABC Jan-Jun 2002- Music Titles).
Capital Radio: 020 7766 6000 www.capitalradiogroup.co.uk Swinstead Publishing 020 7729 3773
Recent Magazine Stories from NewsLine ABC Jan-Jun 2002 – Women’s Monthly Titles ABC Jan – Jun 2002 Men’s Lifestyle Magazines ABC: Cosmopolitan Beaten By Glamour
Subscribers can access ten years of NewsLine articles by clicking the Search button to the left