Oleksandr Ryemiez is a Ukrainian musician from Kharkiv, composer and vocalist. He fronts the most successful rockabilly band of Ukraine – RvB (also known as Hands in Pants). Based out of Kyiv, they participated in Leopolis Jazz Fest (the biggest jazz festival in Europe). Oleksandr also plays guitar and double bass, being involved in numerous jazz projects, including the music and dance show Jazz Age.

Oleksandr plays guitar and double bass, and is also a co-author of music and dance show Jazz Age and the Kyiv Rhythm Kings project. Until 2006, Oleksandr played double bass in the Kharkiv band The WiseGuyz, and later he founded his band RvB, which performs compositions in the style of American music of the 1940s and 1960s, as well as jump blues, rock and roll and rhythm and blues. In 2013, RvB performed a tour in Europe for the first time, and in 2018 and 2019 they released two albums in Ukrainian.

After the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Oleksandr voluntarily joined the Kyiv regional Territorial Defense Force. 

“I had to do something; I went to donate blood… I joined the territorial defense. For me, it was a sign that we did care. In the same way, as during Maidan – every little drop helped make the sea,” shared Oleksandr.

Later, he joined the Armed Forces of Ukraine and served in Luhansk oblast, where he was wounded in early summer. He spent a few weeks in hospital, and during rehabilitation he organized charity concerts and released songs he’d composed on the front. During this ‘retirement’, he also composed his unit’s anthem, which is now available on Spotify. 

The project was initiated by the Ukrainian Institute and was produced in partnership with Jazzography.in.ua.