As it turns out, Echo & the Bunnymen won’t be spending the coming weeks touring the U.S. in support of their latest studio album, The Fountain. According to an issued press release, the English rockers have decided to cancel their upcoming tour dates “due to unreasonable demands that have been presented by the IRS for the band to enter the USA to tour. This is not a VISA issue as some websites have stated. Echo & The Bunnymen will be touring the USA in April of 2010.”

Update: The band has offered more details on the reasoning behind the decision: “The cancellation of the tour is due to the rejection of the band’s Central Withholding Agreement (CWA) by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The rejection was unexpected as the Echo & the Bunnymen team submitted the necessary paperwork in due time and in accordance with the process that had been followed on previous tours. Additionally, the IRS offered no reasoning for the rejection and was unresponsive to our inquiries. This CWA allows for foreign entertainers to be paid in full, otherwise promoters are legally obliged to withhold a minimum of 30% in lieu of tax which ultimately will not allow for a tour to happen at this time.”

[Insert satirical political jab here]

Echo & the Bunneymen 2009 Tour Dates:
11/15 – Atlanta, GA @ Masquerade
11/17 – Washington, DC @ Black Cat
11/18 – State College, PA @ State Theatre
11/20 – Glenside, PA @ Keswick Theatre
11/21 – Fairfield, CT @ Stage One
11/22 – New York, NY @ Hammerstein Ballroom
11/23 – Boston, MA @ House of Blues
11/25 – Chicago, IL @ Metro
12/12 – Oxford, UK @ O2 Academy
12/14 – Newcastle, UK @ O2 Academy
12/15 – Leeds, UK @ O2 Academy
12/17 – Liverpool, UK @ O2 Academy
12/18 – Liverpool, UK @ O2 Academy
12/19 – Liverpool, UK @ O2 Academy