If you're uncomfortable with crowdfunding, are you equally uncomfortable with buying a ticket in advance for a concert, or paying an instrument-maker in advance for an instrument?
It's the same thing.

It's just paying in advance for a CD. No different to pre-ordering a book or CD on amazon (which I've done once or twice).

I suspect the discomfort comes from the fact that it's often one's peers, fellow musicians on much the same amateur level as ourselves, who are the ones asking. The proof of the pudding is in the eating: if you don't think the person asking is any good, don't contribute. I have never contributed to a kickstarted, for the simple reason that nobody whose music I really like has ever asked me. And also, none of my actual friends have asked either. If any of my favourite musicians, who I genuinely would like to hear an album by, asked then I would gladly contribute.

Ultimately whether you consider it justified or not is entirely down to the music. As far as entitlement goes, everyone is 'entitled' to put out a CD, for the simple fact that it's a financial transaction that you can either afford or not.

It's not like we're talking door-to-door salesmen here, or annoying PPI spam phone calls!