Following the cathartic rock of 2022’s Learn to Like It and the more contemplative folk of 2023’s Hertz, Carla Geneve largely turns her focus from guitar to a humble secondhand piano on her third album. But there’s more to Don’t Be Afraid—named after Irish poet Seamus Heaney’s reported final words—than stark balladry. The Western Australian singer-songwriter works closely with producer Dan Carroll to bring in programmed beats, synths, and subtle vocal harmonies for delicate effect. There are still a few guitar parts hanging around, including on the ode to self-reflection that is “Here, Look.” Unspooling like a letter to herself, that tune sees Geneve explore morality and forgiveness while sharing this quiet nugget of wisdom: “Maybe there are more/Choices than you thought.” The country-tinged “Ashamed” opens with equally vulnerable lyrics about medication, drinking, and “trying not to fuck up,” before the double-standard-inspired “Woman Like Me” drops such pointed bon mots as “I love like a man/And cry like a wife.” Some rumbling electric guitar sneaks back into the latter, adding an appropriate afterburn to her deadpan skewering of stock gender roles.