Boasting Noisecreep-friendly acts like All That Remains, For Today, Shadows Fall and P.O.D., plus mainstream artists such as Vanessa Carlton, Jon McLaughlin and Foreigner, Razor & Tie is easily one of the most exciting and successful independent labels around today.

Since starting in 1990, the New York City-based label has scored both Platinum sales and Grammy awards. In 2010, Razor & Tie also entered into a joint venture with Artery Recordings, that has yielded popular releases from the likes of Chelsea Grin and Vanna.

Along with its stellar publicity, marketing, radio and sales staff, Razor & Tie's John Franck (Vice President, Marketing) and Pete Giberga (Vice President, A&R) have been proving that you don't have to be a major label to strike success in this downtrodden music market. Noisecreep recently caught up with Franck (he's on the left, Giberga on the right, in the above photo) and got his thoughts on Razor & Tie's history, current status and future.

Prior to joining Razor & Tie last year, you spent a decade at eOne Music in a similar role. What was it about Razor & Tie that attracted you to come over in the first place?

Franck: What initially excited me about R&T was the opportunity to work in an environment that felt both fresh and entrepreneurial. Razor & Tie has a rich, 20+ year history that spans many different genres. My initial conversations with Razor & Tie's co-owners Cliff Chenfeld and Craig Balsam were very much about marketing but also about where the label wanted to go and its potential growth areas. The idea of investing in hard rock and metal felt like a natural evolution for a label that already had