The Diiv album he is promoting is called Zirp! (meaning “zero interest-rate policy”) and produced by Alex “AG” Cook, the bubbly, neon pop accelerationist and co-conspirator of Charli xcx. Cook is by no means a natural fit for Diiv, who are one of the least garish bands around. It reminds Smith of both the loathed Thatcherite slogan “there is no alternative” and the influential Mark Fisher book Capitalist Realism: Is There No Alternative? As part of his recovery, Smith has helped others living with addiction and maintained a network of the similarly afflicted.