Actually, I know what you're talking about, and it CAN be annoying. I usually only run into it on smaller label CDs or older ones, or even moreso on (how can I state this without sounding bad?) less professional releases.

My belief (from the grand experience of one digital recording session) is that it's almost entirely a function of the mixer/original recording, and nothing to do with the band. If the production crew isn't willing to take the time to fix mistakes (such as the aforementioned time problems, or other mix issues such as stereo dropouts, tone overbalances or the like), then there ain't much can be done.

M