Blankets and sleeping bags adorned the pavement outside Centennial Hall yesterday morning as students and fans came out in droves to buy nearly 2,000 tickets for the Death Cab for Cutie and Franz Ferdinand concert next month.

Students lined up as early as 2:30 a.m. yesterday, but much of the line arrived between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m., in hopes of being the first ones in line to see their emo and rock ‘n’ roll heroes.

By 9 a.m., the line was snaking east on University Boulevard next to Old Main and eventually wrapped around the Social Sciences Building.

By day’s end, the Centennial Hall Box Office had sold 1,924 tickets, said Karla Silva, a Centennial Hall ticket sales representative.

Labelle Truong, an accounting freshman from Arizona State University, left Tempe at midnight Monday and arrived in Tucson at 2:30 a.m. yesterday.

Truong and a friend succeeded in being first in line and said they are excited to see both bands play live March 27, something their institution wasn’t able to provide for them.

“”It’s cool the U of A is bringing them to campus because a lot of people listen to

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both emo and rock-based music,”” Truong said. “”The concert will bring more indie music to the forefront.””

Ryan Patterson, special events coordinator for the Associated Students of the University of Arizona, said while he expected the show to be sold out by performance time and rival the crowd that attended the Counting Crows concert in 2001, he couldn’t have imagined such a large immediate turnout yesterday.

“”Students were all the way down by Old Main,”” said Patterson, a third-year law student. “”I’m really excited about the turnout. We should sell out by the end of the day.””

Patterson said students have a rare opportunity to see Death Cab and Franz Ferdinand at the 2,400 capacity Centennial Hall, creating a more intimate setting, and one that neither band will probably play again, he said.

Aaron Ho, a molecular and cellular biology freshman, and Jordy Siek, an undeclared freshman, both arrived at 4 a.m. and said it was “”all about the music.””

While not the biggest Franz Ferdinand fans, both Ho and Siek said they were in line primarily for Death Cab and hope the Seattle-based band will be headlining the show.

“”We heard Ben Gibbard puts on a great show,”” Siek said about the Death Cab lead singer. “”You know, the bigger the guy, the bigger the musical talent.””

Other students arrived between 7 a.m. and 10 a.m. in order to sleep and attend an early morning class before purchasing their concert tickets.

Jayme Lehman, a senior majoring in Spanish, saw Death Cab for Cutie at the two-day Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif. in 2004 and said she wants to recapture and to share that experience next month with friends, who were in line with her yesterday.

Lehman and history senior Carmen Lyon said they arrived outside Centennial Hall around 7:45 a.m. in order to get the highest priced $35 student tickets and avoid the big lines.

“”I’ve been a fan for a long time,”” Lyon said.

Lehman, who’s also a fan of Franz Ferdinand, said she can’t wait to be up-close and center next to lead singer and guitarist Alex Kapronos.

“”I adore Alex and his great Greek looks and ragged T-shirts,”” Lehman said.

Other students said they were appreciative of the three concerts Patterson and University Activities Board Director Kristen Maryn have brought to campus this year.

“”This is going to be a really big concert with two really liked and respected bands,”” said Ben Sechena, a pre-pharmacy sophomore. “”The concert will definitely be a big hit for the UA; this is just icing on the cake.””