The Red Hot Chili Peppers have revealed their new album suffered a bit of a setback thanks to the recent California wildfires.

Back in September of 2018, Red Hot Chili Peppers frontman Anthony Kiedis confirmed that the band were hitting the studio to work on the follow-up to 2016’s The Getaway.

While info about these sessions had been relatively scarce, fans began to fear the worst when bassist Flea revealed he had been forced flee his home during the devastating California wildfires back in November.

“My house might have burned down down last night were it not for my friend Eric,” Flea wrote on Instagram. “[He] defied the evacuation orders and stayed up all through the night armed with his wits and a garden hose, and put out all the little fires at my house and my neighbors, saving our asses.”

“He is a brave and beautiful, a selfless and kind man.”

However, in a new interview with SiriusXM’s Volume West (via Blabbermouth), drummer Chad Smith revealed that the new Red Hot Chili Peppers album was delayed a bit due to the fires.

“We started to work on it, which, for us, is just getting in a room and making some noise and putting some notes together,” Smith began. “And then the fires came, and the house we were working in, there was no damage, it didn’t burn down, but we couldn’t get back in there. So that halted our [progress].”

In light of these fires, the Red Hot Chili Peppers were one of the bands to perform at the ‘Malibu Love Sesh’ in Hollywood over the weekend. A benefit concert for victims of the fires, the show also featured St. Vincent covering the band’s 1991 track ‘Breaking The Girl’.

“It was cool,” Chad Smith explained. “It was fun. It was a good vibe, and we really appreciate all the people that came down and paid a lot of money — it wasn’t a cheap ticket.”

“But all the proceeds are going to the people that suffered from the fires and the families and everything that is involved in that.”

“Myself and Anthony [Kiedis] both live in Point Dume. Seventy houses in our neighbourhood burned down. Ours was spared, luckily. So it was close to our hearts, and we wanted to do something. And it worked out. And it was fun.”

In related news, the Red Hot Chili Peppers are set to return to Australia in a couple of months for their first headline shows in over a decade. Check out details below, and make sure you buy the correct tickets to their shows!

Check out the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ ‘Dark Necessities’:

Red Hot Chili Peppers Australian Tour 2019

Sunday, February 17th

Derwent Entertainment Centre, Hobart, TAS

Tickets: Live Nation

Tuesday, February 19th

Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney, NSW

Tickets: Live Nation

Wednesday, February 20th

QUDOS Bank Arena, Sydney, NSW

Tickets: Live Nation

Saturday, February 23rd

Hope Estate Winery, Hunter Valley, NSW

Tickets: Live Nation

Monday, February 25th

Brisbane Entertainment Centre, QLD

Tickets: Live Nation

Tuesday, February 26th

Brisbane Entertainment Centre, QLD

Tickets: Live Nation

Thursday, February 28th

Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne, VIC

Tickets: Live Nation

Tuesday, March 5th

nib Stadium, Perth, WA

Tickets: Live Nation

Also appearing at A Day On The Green and the Superloop Adelaide 500 After-Race Concert

Saturday, March 2nd

Mt Duneed Estate, Geelong, VIC

More info: A Day On The Green

Sunday, March 3rd

Superloop Adelaide 500, Adelaide, SA

Tickets: Live Nation