''6'' is the sixth studio album by the Swedish

folk rock Folk rock is a hybrid music genre that combines the elements of folk and rock music, which arose in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s. In the U.S., folk rock emerged from the folk music revival. Performers suc ...

band

Garmarna Garmarna is a Swedish folk rock band. Their songs are mainly old Scandinavian ballads. Biography Garmarna was founded in 1990. Stefan Brisland-Ferner, Gotte Ringqvist and Rickard Westman were inspired by old Swedish music, which they had hear ...

. Released in 2016, it was the band's first album after a hiatus of 15 years. Unlike its predecessors, ''6'' is more electronic and focuses on current issues like refugees, borders, hate and prejudices. It also includes tracks written and recorded in cooperation with other Swedish artists, namely

Maxida Märak Ida Amanda "Maxida" Märak (born 17 September 1988) is a Swedish-Sámi joik singer, hip hop musician, actress and activist. Märak is a human rights activist with a special interest in the rights of the Sámi people. She has taken part in protests ...

, Thåström and Annika Norlin.

Reception

The album received mixed international reviews. While the '' Sonic Seducer'' from Germany published a highly positive review praising the band's energy and musical diversity, reviewers from Garmana's home country Sweden were more reluctant. ''Gaffa'' wrote that Garmarna's new sound was more reminiscent of the ''

Melodifestivalen Melodifestivalen (; literally "the Melody Festival") is an annual song competition organised by Swedish public broadcasters Sveriges Television (SVT) and Sveriges Radio (SR). It determines the country's representative for the Eurovision Song ...

'' than of

folktronica Folktronica is a genre of music comprising various elements of folk music and electronica, often featuring uses of acoustic instruments – especially stringed instruments – and incorporating hip hop, electronic or dance rhythms, although i ...

, but also pointed at "precious melodies" among the otherwise "uncreative arrangements". However, the reviewer for the ''Lira'' magazine noted that ''6'' was essentially Garmarna's first album that consists mostly of self-written works – if containing less folk elements than previous releases, and that Garmana's habit of creating something new had been continued. These reviews agreed also, that the only constant factor throughout the musical development of Garmarna had been the exceptional vocal quality of singer

Emma Härdelin Emma Härdelin (born 26 September 1975) is a Swedish musician. She is a violinist and lead singer in folk-rock band Garmarna,Dupont, Linn.Tystnaden gav Garmarna ett nytt sound (in Swedish), Helsingborgs Dagblad, November 27, 2017. which she joi ...

Track listing

References

{{Authority control Garmarna albums 2016 albums Swedish-language albums