[ssharp]

Might just be a terminology thing, but I don't think mastering engineers work off of tracks. I think they're given mixdowns and adjust from there.

There are some fascinating isolated tracks out there, but I wonder if knowing that stems will get released will push things in the studio even deeper into the territory that every recorded note must be perfect. Making a record already produces a lot of self conscious anxiety that affects your decision making, so knowing that people will also be listening to and analyzing your individual tracks is even worse!