NEW YORK – They Might Be Giants singer-guitarist John Flansburgh was seriously injured in a car crash this week while being driven home from the alternative rock band’s first gig on a pandemic-delayed tour , which resulted in the postponement of shows until at least the end of August.

Meanwhile, the driver of the car that police say caused the sinking was awaiting charge on Friday after being arrested on drunk driving and other charges.

The collision happened early Thursday in the East Harlem neighborhood of Manhattan.

Writing from a hospital bed, Flansburgh told fans he had been driving home a car service since Wednesday’s show at Manhattan’s Bowery Ballroom when the car was boned, flipped on its side and started to smell. motor oil and smoke.

Police say the driver who was arrested ran a red light, jumped a curb and slammed into the gate of a building complex, hitting two cars along the way.

It’s not immediately clear if the 26-year-old driver has an attorney who can comment on the charges, and no phone number could immediately be found for his Bronx home.

Everyone in the three cars was taken to hospital, police said. Flansburgh, 62, wrote that he suffered seven broken ribs, some of which were fractured in multiple places.

Formed in the early 1980s by Flansburgh and John Linnell, They Might Be Giants rose to fame with smart, catchy songs and a character that wasn’t afraid to be geeky. Known for songs such as “Birdhouse in Your Soul”, “Boss of Me” and a version of the original 1953 song “Istanbul (Not Constantinople)”, the duo went platinum with the 1990 album “Flood”. The new tour is a belated celebration of the record’s 30th anniversary.

“It was so wonderful to finally be back on stage and performing for all of you again,” Lindell wrote to fans in a message announcing that the remaining June dates are rescheduled. The band hopes to resume touring on August 30 in Asbury Park, New Jersey, he said.

Flansburgh wrote that while he was sitting in a CT scanner shortly after the crash, he was considering how to get back on the road.

“One day we will rock again – and for me, that day couldn’t come soon enough,” he wrote. But for now, “I’m going to watch reruns of ‘Sex in the City’ until I’m strong enough to reach for the remote.

“Wish me luck,” he added. “I will need it.”

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Associated Press writer Michael Hill contributed from Albany, New York.