Bad Lieutenant cancels U.S. debut, Coachella set threatened by Icelandic volcano

After already scuttling its first-ever American tour once, Bad Lieutenant — featuring Bernard Sumner of New Order — is now “stuck in Manchester,” blocked from getting to the U.S. for its stateside debut because smoke billowing out of an Icelandic volcano has closed the airspace over the U.K.

Bad Lieutenant was scheduled to make its belated American debut Friday night in San Francisco and then play the Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on Saturday (hey, they’ve already announced their setlist), before hitting Chicago and New York for rescheduled shows next week.

UPDATE: Unable to get a flight out of the U.K., the band has now canceled its San Francisco concert after its flights today and tomorrow each were grounded by the volcanic ash. According to a statement on the band’s website:

Bad Lieutenant is extremely disappointed in this bizarre turn of events as they had been very much looking forward to coming to the Bay Area. The band’s management is doing everything it can to make an alternative flight itinerary for the remaining dates.

Word is starting to trickle in of other bands grounded by the volcano, including The Cribs, featuring former Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr. (According to Marr’s Twitter, the Cribs can’t get out of London and have now canceled their Coachella appearance.) Still, other acts, such as Public Image Ltd. and The Specials, already are in the United States.

For Bad Lieutenant, the tour trouble follows the cancellation last fall of its debut American performances, including dates opening for the Pixies, because, as the band said at the time, “the more stringent immigration laws and changing visa parameters resulted in an inability to process the necessary paperwork.”

PREVIOUSLY ON SLICING UP EYEBALLS:

• Spoiler: Bad Lieutenant announces its Coachella festival setlist
• Bad Lieutenant to play Coachella, U.S. concerts in April
• Bad Lieutenant announces five U.K dates in March
• Milestones: New Order’s ‘Technique’ released 21 years ago today
• Bernard Sumner’s Bad Lieutenant cancels debut U.S. concerts
• New Order spinoff Bad Lieutenant announces ‘Never Cry Another Tear’