Building the Bridge: Flea's "Honora"

Flea's long-promised trumpet album has arrived!

There are times when a record is just on time. Flea’s Honora is most certainly one of those efforts. And it’s not the Flea we know. This album is actually the work of a Flea we’ve only heard of. If, like me, you were an early Red Hot Chili Peppers fan, you no doubt remember early interviews with Flea where he discussed his childhood trumpet playing. I also recall his awesome mother saying her son could really play like a "m.....fker", or something of that nature. He hit the lottery in the mom department, no doubt. 

So, after decades of frantic funk and sock underwear, Flea releases Honora into a world that just about everyone sees as coming undone in one dramatic way or another. How can we let this happen? Where do we derive our joy from now? What does the future hold? What’s the fix? Flea tackles all these questions in this absolute stunner of a jazz album. He does this musically, lyrically, and vocally. Was he successful? In my view, he was- in shocking fashion…until side 3. But that will be the debate that surrounds this album, I’d guess.

I won’t spoil or give Cliff’s Notes to the wonderful essay Flea provides Honara purchasers. But let’s say this album is beyond a passion project. He’s made making a trumpet album a lifelong goal and has finally found the personnel to make this a reality. It seems that it all started with Josh Johnson and his contributions to Flea’s main act, The Red Hot Chili Peppers. Josh’s sax playing is a wonder in its own right, but his wife joins him on Honora on the bass.

By the way, can you imagine playing bass on a Flea album? No need to imagine it- her immaculate and inspiring upright bass work so completely holds Flea’s compositions down that I found myself constantly checking who was playing each amazing lick, as Flea is also playing electric bass on many of these tracks with her.  When Flea later discovered that Josh had produced one of his favorite modern jazz records, featuring the amazing Jeff Parker on guitar, he realized that the package for his own jazz record had come together. He had now also found his producer. Honora sounds exactly like what it’s supposed to be: it’s of the time; it’s inspired, and it finds Flea organically surrounded by some of the best jazz musicians LA can provide. They are there to support, collaborate, uplift and complete Flea’s vision. And, I have to say, it has been on repeat in our house since I first heard it. 

The first two sides of this LP are anchored mostly by Flea’s compositions. And each is incredible in its own way. “A Plea”, to me, is the thematic opener for this album. It truly is a plea for “building the bridge” between the people of this planet who have been separated by politics. This is exactly the messaging we need right now and the music simply crushes. Flea’s bass line is melodic, precise and infectious. It’s cycling through my head as I write.

The band feels so organic and together on these tracks, and it’s no wonder when you finally understand how this band was assembled. “Traffic Lights” is a standout to me, and it's a song written by Flea, Johnson and Thom Yorke. You can really hear Yorke’s input on this song. The polyrhythms all twist and melt into each other, and the feel takes you into a headspace that is at once galactic and introspective. It’s truly something.

“Frailed” is another atmosphere piece that benefits from John Frusciante’s treatment of the drums, and Flea is seemingly channeling Miles Davis on Ascensour Pour l'échafaud.  This is a piece that could quite literally be featured as a soundtrack to a visual presentation at Hayden Planetarium. You are fully floating.

“Morning Cry” swings like no other track on the album. It’s full of verve, joy, and timing swings that engage. It’s musical caffeine, a pure pleasure to listen to. This was a perfect way to finish a musical thought built over two sides.  

But then you get to the 3rd side. This one is controversial because some will undoubtedly feel these tracks expand on what Flea has built during the first two sides. But I am not one of those people. “Maggot Brain” opens side 3. It fits so perfectly with the album Flea has delivered up to this point. It’s slow and moody, and those Davis intonations are still snaking through his lines. Boundless beauty on this one.

But then we move into Nick Cave’s take on “Witchita Lineman”. I have a hot take on this track. It’s as stunningly beautiful a cover of the original as one could imagine. Cave’s voice aches, and the pace and emotion really create a cinematic backdrop for his vocal delivery. It’s truly one of the best things on the album. But, to me, it doesn't fit the rest of the album in any way. I’d love to see this featured as a single or as a part of a separate album. And, Flea’s trumpet playing seems to be trying to anchor the song to his jazz concept. Yet even his trumpet playing becomes more one-dimensional and anchored to the melody.

Gone are the searching lines that define Honora. It seems forced in a way that none of the other songs are. Yet I love it. “Thinkin Bout You” by Frank Ocean and Shea Taylor is just okay to me. Once again, does it really fit all the music that came before? Does it break the spell of the first record? To me, it does. It’s more in the spirit of the general statement than “Witichita Lineman”, but it drags and the trumpet playing, once again, is more constrained on this one.

Ann Ronell’s “Willow Weep for Me” is similar to my ears. Fruisciante’s treatment is interesting, and we are veering back on the track thematically to what most of Honora delivers, but it still feels a bit lost in the woods to me. We are veering. “Free as I Want to Be” sounds like the only track on the album that could be a Red Hot Chili Peppers song. And, it works as a closer for this incredible album. It’s got the funk. And it really brings listeners back to the core message of the album. The hook of this one gets locked up in your brain, and it’s really a standout that modulates in mood as it organically develops. If side three ended with “Maggot Brain” and “Free as I Want to Be”, I’d understand the flow. It would be more coherent. 

But I could just as easily see someone contradicting these points and loving the change in direction that the last side presents. It’s also fair to say that Flea has created a bit of a musical salon with Honora. He anchors the project, no doubt, but there is a wonderful symphony of influence at play here. So, maybe this is where they found themselves. No matter, Honora is without a doubt one of my favorite releases of the year so far.

I’m stunned by what Flea put together and how well it answers our need for music to heal the pain we are most certainly feeling in these troubling times. Hey, did I mention that this album sounds fantastic, too?! Recorded largely at Sunset Sound, the sonics are dynamic, deep and nuanced. Fully analog, I doubt it. And there is no information about the workflow, so that supports my theory of a high quality digital recording, but nothing I hear distracts. Honora sounds as spatial and engaging as it should. It continues to transport me all over the galaxy on a nightly basis.