If there's been a drawback for David Bowie fans in the wake of his unexpected un-retirement, it's that -- in typically inscrutable Bowie fashion -- he's refused to grant any interviews or make any public appearances in support of his new album, 'The Next Day.' As it turns out, he's just been waiting for the right request.

He received in the form of a plea from writer Rick Moody, who reached out while preparing to write a piece on 'The Next Day' for The Rumpus. Rather than an interview, Moody asked Bowie for "sort of a work flow diagram" for the album -- as he put it in the (12,000-word) article, "I wanted to understand the lexicon of 'The Next Day,' and so I simply asked if he would provide this list of words about his album."

Somewhat surprisingly, Bowie obliged -- to the letter. What follows is his list of 42 words intended to help Moody "think about ['The Next Day'] in light of what he was thinking about it." It certainly sparked something in Moody, whose column goes on to explore, in depth, how these words relate to the music. Your mileage may vary.

Effigies

Indulgences

Anarchist

Violence

Chthonic

Intimidation

Vampyric

Pantheon

Succubus

Hostage

Transference

Identity

Mauer

Interface

Flitting

Isolation

Revenge

Osmosis

Crusade

Tyrant

Domination

Indifference

Miasma

Pressgang

Displaced

Flight

Resettlement

Funereal

Glide

Trace

Balkan

Burial

Reverse

Manipulate

Origin

Text

Traitor

Urban

Comeuppance

Tragic

Nerve

Mystification

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