yea, i honestly don't know what happened. i really had high hopes. i was truly sorry it didn't work out. he seems to know what he's talking about. i did give it several tries. maybe he just thought my tunes sucked....
and, it did seem he was the closest fit to someone who really understood metal/hard rock. he was in a band some years ago. can't remember the name.
anyway - regarding whether or not to find someone to master your music that has a healthy background and appreciation for your genre is, I think, extremely important. i found that out firsthand on my last mastering. the guy was really nice but didn't have a big metal background (if any). lesson learned. at the end of the day - you want someone who understands the intensity of metal and is going to pull every fucking knob he/she can to make your music come screaming out of those speakers and grab you at the throat. you know? i know with my background if i was a mastering engineer - i'd probably be able to do a better job at mastering someone's metal project than say someone who's into indie music or jazz. maybe, who knows. i guess i just "get" it. hard to explain. comes with listening to most every metal CD made since the early 80's and playing in bands since i was 14. and let us not forget that when you're plunking down some serious cash, you wanna make sure that person in front of the board is on the same page as you musicially. plus, of course the obvious - it's your music!!
that's it! all us old rockers seem to live in the past.. the "hey day".. the "spandex day"... 
