in rainbows

Just How Big of a Gay Artist Will Vampire Weekend’s Rostam Batmanglij Become?

Now that Rostam Batmanglij, of the mega-hyped band Vampire Weekend, is on the record as a homo, is he going to be a big swinging dick for LGBT rights? Or just drop subtle hints for equality?

On Saturday, Batmanglij and his three fellow Vampires performed on Saturday Night Live to promote their new record Contra, which is pretty good, but suffers a bit from sophomore slump. It was their second time on the show; in 2008, viewers were treated to the addictive “A-Punk.” Except this time Batmanglij, who plays keyboard and guitar, sometimes provides secondary vocals, and is the band’s producer and songwriter, was sporting something notable: a rainbow-colored guitar strap.

We’ve gone through photos and videos of Vampire Weekend performing previously, from festivals to late night shows to music videos, and couldn’t find Batmanglij make any other obvious links to his sexuality. But perhaps that’s all about to change. “Diplomat’s Son” (below) is a “a six-minute dancehall song about a gay relationship,” says Batmanglij, who also insists the song “I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend,” from his other band Discovery’s 2009 album, is a gay anthem that just never exploded.

Or maybe: A rainbow guitar strap is just a rainbow guitar strap.

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