Canadian singer and guitarist Ora Cogan, who also works as an investigative photojournalist, addresses all the perceived adversities that can lead to hardening of the heart (not just for women) on her ninth album, "Hard Hearted Woman"—transforming them into catchy and defiantly optimistic folk-pop songs. Tracks like "The Smoke" sometimes evoke Simon & Garfunkel, sometimes Cat Stevens (whose ode to a "Hard Headed Woman" Ora referenced in the album title). But they also frequently recall the dark wave melancholy of recent Cate Le Bon albums or the work of Anja Huwe/Xmal Deutschland (like Ora, on the US emo label "Sacred Bones"). Highly recommended!