Out of nowhere but exactly on brand, Flea just swerved hard off the rock highway and into late-night jazz territory. The Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist has released “Traffic Lights,” the second single from his upcoming solo album Honora, and it features none other than Thom Yorke. Yes, that Thom Yorke. The result is moody, restless, and beautifully upside down.
This isn’t a side project that screams “celebrity collab.” It feels more like two musical lifers locking eyes across a smoky room and deciding to follow the groove wherever it goes.
“Traffic Lights” follows the album’s first taste, A Plea, but this one cuts deeper. Flea says the track was born on day one in the studio with drummer Deantoni Parks, instantly reminding him of Atoms for Peace energy. He sent it to Yorke on instinct. Instinct nailed it.
Yorke delivers a haunting vocal and co-wrote the track with Flea and saxophonist Josh Johnson. Lyrically, it’s about living in reverse, trying to decode reality when everything feels both fake and painfully real. Classic Yorke existentialism, but grounded by Flea’s human warmth.
Backing them is a serious crew with deep jazz roots:
- Jeff Parker on guitar
- Nathaniel Walcott on Fender Rhodes
- Deantoni Parks on drums
- Mauro Refosco on percussion
- Josh Johnson on alto sax
Flea himself handles electric bass and trumpet, sounding freer than he ever does in stadium mode. The track breathes. It doesn’t rush. It trusts the silence.
Flea has confirmed that his new album Honora arrives March 27. The title comes from a family member, and the record promises even more left turns. One of them includes a track sung by Nick Cave, which already feels illegal in the best way.
The project’s origin story goes all the way back to 1991, when Flea was acting in Gus Van Sant’s My Own Private Idaho. At the time, he worried that serious musicians might see him as a rock tourist. Instead, the opposite happened. He’s described playing with this group as feeling “like being on drugs.” Honestly, fair.
Tracklist for Honora
- Golden Wingship
- A Plea
- Traffic Lights
- Frailed
- Morning Cry
- Maggot Brain
- Wichita Lineman
- Thinkin Bout You
- Willow Weep for Me
- Free As I Want to Be