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monday

There are two things you can always count on when watching an indie-rock documentary: 1) You aren’t going to learn anything about the artists that you didn’t already know from owning their records, and 2) you’ll probably have to sit through a Henry Rollins interview. Olympia, Wash., punk label K Records, however, has never been about respecting the rules. It’s spent nearly 20 years proving that you don’t need chops or a pretty singing voice to make good music, and the documentary The Shield Around the K: The K Records Story goes on to show that—contrary to Rule No. 2—you don’t need a Black Flag front-man to attest to the importance of your record label for it to be understood. With concert footage, music videos, and informative interviews featuring several D.I.Y. luminaries, The Shield Around the K documents the birth and early years of Calvin Johnson and Candice Pedersen’s widely influential imprint, which—contrary to Rule No. 1—you can’t learn about just by listening to Beat Happening’s Black Candy. The film shows at 9 p.m. at the Black Cat, 1811 14th St. NW. $5 (proceeds to benefit All Our Power). (202) 667-7960. (Aaron Leitko)