wood recommendation

Hello,

I am a newbie, trying to do a second furniture project. I want to build a base for a sofa chair and was wondering about the choice of wood.

Serious woodworkers seem to think I am crazy for wanting to paint or use very dark stain for my piece. But for my overall design, that’s what I want. I want it to be chocolate brown to black, but I also want long wood grains to show. I love zebra wood. Although it would be not be possible to have the kind of contrast zebra wood has, I would love to see some contrast after I stain the piece really dark.

Is there any cheaper wood that would give me the similar effect? Effectively, I am looking for long thin stiped look. Plywood with veneer finish is not going to work for me… Need to use solid wood due to joinery…

Thank you so much,
jinjin