The Golden Horde： '100 Boys' — The Golden Horde： '100 Boys'

JUL 01 1991 · 12:00

The Golden Horde： '100 Boys' — The Golden Horde： '100 Boys' (1991) Director: Richie Smyth Era: Irish Post-Punk / Neo-Psychedelic Breakthrough (1989–1991) - Peak period of Dublin's alternative rock underground, coinciding with The Golden Horde's signing to U2's Mother/Island Records label and the release of their critically acclaimed self-titled LP, which tied with U2's Achtung Baby for Hot Press Album of the Year 1991. High. '100 Boys' is a rare surviving music video document from Ireland's pre-internet underground rock scene, preserving both the kinetic performance style of one of Dublin's most critically revered cult bands and the early directorial voice of Richie Smyth, who would go on to shape the visual identity of U2's Zoo TV era. Its joint Hot Press Album of the Year status (tied with Achtung Baby) and MTV '120 Minutes' exposure give it legitimate archival weight as a crossroads artefact between Irish indie culture and the emerging global alternative rock mainstream. Context: The Golden Horde occupied a singular position in the Irish alternative music landscape of the late 1980s and early 1990s — a cult band whose influence consistently outran their commercial reach. '100 Boys', launched as a single on U2's Mother/Island Records imprint in October 1989, was one of the first major statements from that label's roster. The band's self-titled 1991 album, which features the track, was voted joint Album of the Year alongside U2's Achtung Baby at the Hot Press Irish Music Awards, a remarkable critical standing for an underground act. The video was made by a friend of the band, Richie Smyth, who would go on to become one of Ireland's foremost music video and commercial directors. The band's 'Ramones-like rock'n'roll' (Wierd Duk, Eurorock Festival 1988) — filtered through psychedelia, pop craft, and post-punk abrasion — found its visual correlate in a raw, fast-cut performance aesthetic that mirrored the energy of their legendary live shows. Director notes: The '100 Boys' video was shot by Richie Smyth as a friend of the band, on what multiple sources describe as a low-budget, intimate production consistent with the Dublin underground scene. It was made concurrently with the 'Friends in Time' video, both produced in the 1989–1991 window around the band's Mother/Island Records period. The video's rapid editing pace (avg shot 1.81s, 118 cuts) and warm, high-contrast look reflect the practical constraints and raw aesthetic of the early-90s Irish independent music video scene. The YouTube upload (filename tagged 2010) is a 'redux' re-edit or re-upload of the original 1991 video. The production served as an early career-launching credit for Smyth, directly leading to his long-running collaboration with U2.