Joy is in abundance at Burlington’s Waterfront Park three weeks after the Brothers of The Sun finale in Foxboro, as Grace Potter & The Nocturnals prepare to close out their second annual Grand Point North Festival. The event is less of a celebration of the host band than a tribute to the community that has nurtured it. Local artisans and activist groups are woven into the festival environment, with the visual design by Grace’s father Sparky.

The smell of warm maple syrup wafts through the air, courtesy of a well-trafficked food vendor. The aroma is so striking and so evocative of the setting that Bay Area vocalist Nicki Bluhm, making her first area appearance, marvels at it during her afternoon set. Grace and Matt grin at this observation from their vantage point to the side of the stage where they watch most of the acts over the course of the day – slightly out of audience sightline so as not to be too distracting but close enough to take in the sounds of the groups that they have invited to appear, both out of personal friendship and musical fancy.

Grace & The Nocturnals make the rounds backstage carrying themselves as solicitous hosts who ensure that every drink is topped off rather than as conquering heroes. Grace is a magnet for her fellow artists, area dignitaries, contest winners and special guests, who she all treats alike. One of Grace’s special gifts is a natural charisma and lack of pretense as she meets well-wishers on their own terms and draws them into her circle – a gift that also translates onto the stage.

One topic that comes up out of band earshot is a performance on FOX’s X-Factor three nights earlier by 18-year-old contestant, Jennel Garcia, who wowed the judging panel with a version of Grace Potter & The Nocturnals’ "Paris ( “Ooh La La).” As a result, the song soon topped the iTunes charts. (When discussing this later, Potter is a little hazy on the particulars and responds, “I don’t speak music business. I wish I was better at it all and had a better grasp on the numbers and the this and the that.” )

It’s Simon Cowell’s feedback to the performance that elicits response, having told Garcia, “You’re on the money because right now what is missing on the pop charts is a young Pat Benatar – someone like that.”

One wonders about the artist who wrote and recorded the song but Rick Krim, who is at Grand Point North with his son, later comments, “The public doesn’t know what they’re missing. We’re living in this big pop world and rock has become the underground.”

It sure doesn’t feel that way when The Nocturnals take the stage in the early evening. The band is in perpetual motion during a rowdy, animated set brimming with riffs and rapture. It is also features a guest appearance from Phish keyboard player Page McConnell, which prompts Grace to extol the thrill of joining one’s idol on a Saturday night and catalyzes an impromptu poll of her bandmates as to how many Phish shows they had seen in their lifetime. (She leads the pack with 40, but Benny concedes to having attended too many to count.)

A telling sequence follows a bit later when Grace jumps off the stage and into the photographers’ pit for a few moments of direct communion with the crowd. But given the spontaneity in this “beautiful madness” as Matt describes it, there isn’t an easy way to get back to the stage. In order to return, Potter makes her way over to the backstage entry point and then through a side-stage viewing platform. As she finally accomplishes this feat, she jostles a 12-year-old fan, who has been watching the show from the nearest vantage point. The girl is thrilled by the contact and all the more so when Grace returns during a guitar break in the next song to issue a direct, sincere apology.

Back in August, when the band closed out their show at Gillette Stadium, Grace had pulled Matt Burr’s parents onto the stage in celebration of their 50th wedding anniversary. (The luxury suite that the band later occupied was secured in their honor, along with that of birthday boy Scott Tournet). On this evening they take it even further, during the “All You Need Is Love” encore, initially drawing out many of the day’s performers including The Avett Brothers and Tim and Nicki Bluhm. But then, halfway throughout the song, Potter crosses the stage and invites all of her friends and family to join in for the final verse. The song concludes with Grace’s father wrapping her in a warm, enveloping hug.

After the song concludes and gives way to exit music – a recording of Stevie Wonder’s “Sir Duke” – Grace spies former bandmate Bryan Dondero. She hasn’t seen him since the split but he’s on hand to put any hard feelings aside.

As Grace explains, “I’m dancing with Seth Avett and I don’t mean to cut him off because Seth is a very charming man but I see Bryan. So we have a little waltz together as we walk off stage.”

For an artist drawn to big gestures but still enamored with little moments, it’s a sweet and satisfying last waltz.