Cars frontman Ric Ocasek found dead

Ric Ocasek, frontman and lead singer of New Wave innovators The Cars, was found dead on Sunday, US police said.

The New York Police Department said in a statement that they had received a call at approximately 8pm "for an unconscious male at East 19th Street. He was pronounced dead at the scene," and the body was identified as Ocasek.

There were no signs of foul play in the 75-year-old's death, newspaper USA Today reported.

Under Ocasek's leadership, The Cars brought quirky electronic effects of New Wave to classically structured pop songs, generating a string of hits such as "You Might Think," "Shake It Up," and "Drive" in the 1980s.

After breaking up later on in the decade, the band reunited in 2011 after Ocasek wrote new songs he believed would sound best if played with his old bandmates, USA Today said.

Last year, the band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame along with Bon Jovi, the Moody Blues, Dire Straits, Nina Simone and Sister Rosetta Tharpe.