SPD 47: Andy Cowles's Favorite Magazine
47 12.23.11
Favorite Magazine: Guitarist Deluxe
I love it when you see a new magazine cover or app that is so breathtakingly brilliant all you want to do it stick under the nose of the nearest person and say, 'Whoah! have you seen THIS?'
You'll do just that when you look at Guitarist Deluxe. The regular Guitarist magazine is a steady seller in print and as a PDF in Apple's newsstand. But the Guitarist Deluxe app, currently available there as a free preview issue, moves the goalposts so far they're on a different pitch. The blend of video, typography and captioning on the cover alone is well worth paying for.
OK, so guitar playing is well suited to soundtracks and videos, but the thing I'm inspired by is that Guitarist Deluxe is not a fashion brand as such. It has no pretensions, doesn't seek to prove how clever it is, just to tell it's story in the very best way possible for it's reader.
Good specialist titles have always had to serve both the in-depth requirements of their core reader, as well as making the subject matter accessible enough for a floating voter. I don't even play guitar right now, but when I do, I'll know exactly which brand to turn to.
This post is part of the Favorite Magazines Project, part of SPD's PUB 47 Competition and Awards. Download the entry forms and be a part of the competition here.