Our latest Niagara Spotlight is on Green White Checkered, a Niagara Falls alternative/garage rock band blending power pop energy with melodic hooks and a raw emotional undercurrent. We caught up with band member Jonathon Howe to chat about the project, how they got started, and what the band has coming up next.
From The Strait: First off, introduce yourself – what’s your band name, and where in Niagara are you from?
Jonathon Howe: We are Green White Checkered and we are from Niagara Falls. All three of us share vocal duties with Jonathon Howe playing guitar, Matt Milne playing bass and Anthony Greco playing drums.
From The Strait: Tell us a bit about your music, and how you got started.
Jonathon Howe: We all originally played together in High School. I (Jonathon) have known Anthony since Kindergarten. Matt and I met in High School when he started going to school with Anth. We started jamming probably in 2011, and then around 2013, we went our separate ways when we started getting busy with college and university. In 2023, I was sitting on a pile of original songs and wanted to put them out, recording them with Vince Soliveri (The Dirty Nil, MVLL CRIMES, The Drew Thomson Foundation) at Boxcar Sound in Hamilton and then started playing some solo shows around Niagara.
When I needed to start putting a band together, I ran into Anthony at a bar and asked if he would be interested in playing a gig at The Warehouse. We also reached out to Matt and put the old lineup back together again, officially forming in 2024. We decided to make the project a collective, where we could all bring our ideas for songs to the table and refine them together as a unit, and we have been on a roll writing and playing as much as possible. We all bond over a shared love of alternative and pop punk music with each of us bringing something different to the table.
Despite issuing the original EP after forming as a band, the first release featuring all three of us is our recent single “Somebody’s Something”. It’s a drinking song in a waltz time signature that sways musically. The lyrics tackle looking yourself in the mirror and trying to appear like you have it all together when really you’re kind of a mess on the inside.
From The Strait: What are some of your favourite bands and artists?
Jonathon: Green Day, The Replacements, The Dirty Nil, Oasis
Anthony: Foo Fighters, Microwave, PUP
Matt: The Story So Far, Neck Deep, The Wonder Years
From The Strait: What other Niagara-based acts are you listening to lately?
Jonathon Howe: The Niagara Scene is insane right now, so many great songs coming from some awesome bands. Amanda Lyn Parker, Okay Camper, Bellows, Boys Boys, Permilla, Moe Killed My Cool, Days On Parade, Real Kevin, Panharmonicon, Deer Fang… I know I am forgetting a few… of course Lonely Little Kitsch too 😉 Seriously, you guys are great!
From The Strait: If our readers were going to listen to you for the first time, what song should they start with and why?
Jonathon Howe: I would say start with “Somebody’s Something”. It’s the first song we recorded together and first song I brought to the band after we formed. The first EP was mostly written over a decade ago, “Somebody’s Something” really feels like the beginning of this band.
From The Strait: What’s next for you? Any shows or new music on the way?
Jonathon Howe: We have two more songs we recorded with Jack and Bailey over at Frostbite Recording Studio that are going to come out in March and probably May, watch for those. First show of the year is at Camp Cataract March 28th in Niagara Falls with The New Hires, making the trek down from Ottawa.
From The Strait: Drop some links! Social, streaming, anywhere for people to find you and dive right in.
Jonathon Howe: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/6Lh1aAekn7Eomw8XRQWidg
Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/somebodys-something-single/1865300274
Bandcamp: https://greenwhitecheckered.bandcamp.com/track/somebodys-something
YouTube: https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=8taPTR-QEq4&si=T1wm9OHRbip_boTz
SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/greenwhitecheckeredband/somebodys-something
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/greenwhitecheckeredband/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@greenwhitecheckeredband
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@GreenWhiteCheckeredBand
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GreenWhiteCheckeredBand
Website: https://greenwhitecheckered.bandzoogle.com/epk
