Red Hot Chili Peppers have announced a surprise new album.

Anthony Kiedis and co’s Return of the Dream Canteen, which will be released on 14th October 2022.

The surprise announcement was made when the band played Denver’s Empower Field as part of their North American tour dates to a rapturous response from the crowd.

The news marks the band’s second Rick Rubin-produced album of the year, following Unlimited Love, which was released on 1st April 2022.

Red Hot Chili Peppers said of the news: “We went in search of ourselves as the band that we have somehow always been. Just for the fun of it we jammed and learned some old songs. Before long we started the mysterious process of building new songs. A beautiful bit of chemistry meddling that had befriended us hundreds of times along the way. Once we found that slip stream of sound and vision, we just kept mining.

“With time turned into an elastic waist band of oversized underwear, we had no reason to stop writing and rocking. It felt like a dream. When all was said and done, our moody love for each other and the magic of music had gifted us with more songs than we knew what to do with. Well we figured it out. 2 double albums released back to back. The second of which is easily as meaningful as the first or should that be reversed. ‘Return of the Dream Canteen’ is everything we are and ever dreamed of being. It’s packed. Made with the blood of our hearts, yours truly, the Red Hot Chili Peppers”.

Speaking of their Unlimited Love release, Flea told Radio X the record was: “the best of us”.

“I can just tell you that this record is the best of us,” the bassist beamed. “It’s the best that we have to offer. We dug as deep as we could. We don’t take one second ever for granted. We made the best music and look… like or don’t like it… there’s nothing else like it.

“You can’t go hear another record that sounds like the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Unlimited Love. You cannot. It is physically impossible!”

Unlimited Love was the band’s 12th studio album and the follow-up to 2016’s The Getaway, but perhaps more significantly, it’s also the first effort recorded with returning guitarist John Frusciante since 2006’s Stadium Arcadium.

RHCP continue their world tour dates this Wednesday 27th July in San Diego California before the band head to Santa Clara and play. homecoming gig in Los Angeles.