Taeyang's Interview with Dazed & Confused

These are from Dazed & Confused's December 2013 issue. We've only posted the magazine scans before, and these are the official photos from Dazed's website uploaded today:

BIGBANG's Taeyang on nosebleeds, tattoos and true art

Taeyang is 26 years old, and already a K-pop veteran. Born in 1988 and training since the age of 12 with YG – one of the Korean music industry’s big three record companies – he burst onto the scene in 2006 as part of the mega boyband BIGBANG. With bandmates G-Dragon, T.O.P., Seungri and Daesung, he became one of the biggest stars Korea ever seen. Paradoxically, for one of the biggest global K-pop brands – they have that easy “name three K-pop artists” association that connect most Westerners with that radical, hi-tech and hysterically exciting world – BIGBANG have done most to re-imagine what a K-pop artist is, transforming the role into a musical innovator, producer and songwriter.

Absorbing style influences from punk to rap and twinning current underground R&B to his native, hyper-sonic pop music, he's emblematic of a golden generation combining the global avant garde, the rituals of South Korean society and the technology of the most networked society on earth. He's maybe the most spiritual of the band: his location on Twitter is "light" and he shows a monk-like devotian to his stagecraft, beating back nosebleeds to perform. Now, on the day Taeyang releases his second solo album, Rise, we translated his Dazed Korea interview into English to shine a light onto this 21st century popstar.

Have you ever walked along Itaewon street this late at night?
I used to come to Itaewon quite often, because G-dragon used to live Itaewon so we always hung out this area.

It is already 4am, but Itaewon is still very energetic.
I had so much fun today. The shoot gave me a super vibe.

I haven’t seen you for five years, since we did an interview with you at 2008. You are a man now!
I guess I am!

What has been changed for you?
Personally, I feel I’m more mature than before.