The Double Down celebrates the only way it knows how

Leslie Ventura

Wednesday, Dec. 1, 2010 | 4:55 p.m.

What do Miley Cyrus and the Double Down Saloon have in common? They’re both full-grown. The happiest place on Earth celebrated its 18th birthday on Friday night with loud music, booze and a whole lot of Ass Juice (the bar’s infamous cocktail). Yep, it was pretty much just like any other night at the Double Down.

Roxie and Jesse Amoroso of the band Pigasus reunited with other members of The Loud Pipes to kick off the party. Before they disbanded years ago, The Loud Pipes played at the Double Down so often, Amoroso says it’s still as comfortable as playing in her living room. “[Owner P] Moss has always been accommodating no matter what kind of crazy high jinks we’ve ever wanted to pull,” Amoroso says.

“This is the only place where I can do crazy shit like spit on people ... and they’re not gonna be like, ‘Oh my God, he’s gonna break something,’” singer Tony Lopez says.

Amid the blaring punk music, smoke and leather, Moss sat quietly in the corner, talking to patrons and joking with the bartender. “I didn’t think it would be this big a deal,” Moss says about his bar’s impact on the Vegas punk scene. “It wasn’t much of a scene, but it grew and we were sort of the epicenter.”

How long will the Double Down be around? A lot longer than Miss Cyrus, if you ask Moss. He says his bar will still be running strong a million years from now. “There’s no reason [for it] not to be. It’s the happiest place on Earth, for God’s sake.”