When Blitzen Trapper’s last record, Wild Mountain Nation, burst on the scene in June 2007, it was a breath of fresh air just as the summer heat wave struck. The opening Neil Young guitar peals of the title track and the rollicking campfire singalong “Country Caravan” had the internet going crazy, but the record itself — for all its jumps in style and frenzied rhythms — was a slow-burner, rewarding the fans who stuck around after the first flurry of mp3 activity passed by.

The record put the Portland, Oregon sextet on the map, but it was actually their third, self-released full-length. They wound up with real national exposure — Rolling Stone named the title track in their Top 100 songs of 2007. A buzz-storm ensued, and eventually they landed at Sub Pop. Multi-instrumentalist Marty Marquis took a few minutes a couple of days ago to talk with us about life on the road and their upcoming album, Furr, ahead of their show tonight at the Black Cat’s backstage.

Where are you all right now?

We’re just getting out of the hotel in Columbia, Missouri. We finished up a headlining show with Mahjongg. Do you know them? They’re pretty cool, kinda heavy on electric tip, lot of percussion going on, kinda funky. Not too much of a vocal group, more jam-based than, like, actual songs, but great, I really enjoyed it.

You all are about halfway through a massive tour. What’s it like to be away from home for so long?

Yeah, it’s almost two months long, we’re kinda right in the middle of it. I think it ends April 19, and it started in the last part of February. It’s pretty exhausting, just because the distances you have to cover are so vast, you don’t sleep as much as you like to, you don’t have time to get good food. It takes time to get good food in America.