POP & ROCK

Duran Duran, the original teen dreams of the MTV generation, are said to be so jazzed by the music on their just-released album “Big Thing” that they’ve undertaken a hit-and-run tour of nine North American cities. Andy Taylor, Simon le Bon and Nick Rhodes (plus guitarist Warren Cuccurullo and drummer Sterling Campbell) have been slipping into towns to play small halls, announcing the shows on the days of the performances to avoid the hype of a big-deal Duran tour. This being Hollywood, and Duran being a Capitol Records act, today’s event is a little different: a free, half-hour concert at 4 p.m. at the Capitol Records parking lot on Vine Street. On Friday the group plays the 900-seat Cocoanut Grove at the Ambassador Hotel. Tickets go on sale at 8 a.m. today at Ticketmaster mobile outlets in Burbank, Fountain Valley and Long Beach.