Arcade Fire turn earth into heaven at Big Sur

Stick Arcade Fire in the middle of a forest and magic is bound to happen. It's hard to describe how unbelievably special it was seeing the band play the Henry Miller Library in Big Sur on Oct. 5. Thanks to lucky and kind friends, I was able to score a ticket to this once-in-a-lifetime show, seeing the band perform with 250 others amidst a wonderland of trees thriving next to a breathtaking ocean expanse. It's hard to imagine a concert more glorious  — take one of the most stellar live bands around these days, add the ethereal atmosphere of Big Sur, a few hundred ecstatic fans, and a sprinkling of rain to remind you, "Hot-damn, yes we are watching one of the best bands of the modern era in the center of nature." Most of the audience wore perma-grins being present at such an event, and Arcade Fire's seeming pleasure at performing at such a special place as Big Sur only enhanced the thrill of being there. It certainly proved how accessible — and normal — these "music superstars" really are. How cool was it to see frontman Win Butler and company mingling so freely among the crowd, before, during and after the show? Butler practically spent more time roaming the audience than onstage — fans could spot him catching the pretty amazing sax theatrics of Colin Stetson's opening set, standing beside throngs of fans during "Haiti" to enjoy his wife, Regine Chassagne, and the rest of the band performing in this special place, and just generally being his antsy self onstage, jumping into the crowd whenever he felt like it. The musical highlight of the night most certainly was "Month of May," which found the band at its most intense and the kids in the audience going absolutely nuts, segueing into "Rebellion (Lies)". Other absurdly awesome moments included "Ready to Start," "We Used to Wait," which brought Stetson and his superior sax skills back onstage, "Neighborhoods (Tunnels)," and a rousing version of "Power Out," made even more interesting by the rain that began to fall and threaten a real power outage. Oh, that rain. Yeah, it prevented Arcade Fire from getting to soundcheck before the show, and did cut the night short by one song ("Intervention"), but how cool was it to be doused in raindrops during the beginning of "Wake Up," only to have the sky clear by the end of the song? This show was but a dream. Setlist: The Suburbs The Suburbs (Continued) Suburban War Crown Of Love Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels) The Well And The Lighthouse Keep The Car Running Ready To Start Month Of May Rebellion (Lies) Neighborhood #2 (Laika) No Cars Go Haiti Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains) We Used To Wait Neighborhood #3 (Power Out) Wake Up "Month of May" into "Rebellion (Lies)," Big Sur, Oct. 5"