In a mix session today several instruments (a bell track, a synth sweep, and some claps) we're done twice. I took one of them and opened a compressorbank basic comp, dragged the attack time to it's fastest and then used the release time to create a 'fade/pan' away from the middle. Great way to get some movement happening in a mix.
But the champion fast attack time of the month award goes to the 808 kick. There was a pair of slightly different sounding 'tuned' melody line 808's (club banger) both doing the same thing. Cranking a super fast attack on one caused a nice HIT at the top of the notes, while the other uncompressed one eventually took over the sustain. Both the client and I we're loving what was going on there and it became quite a feature of the song.
Fast attack times can create very punch, tight, controlled tones.
Part of the key to quickening the attack time is usually that the release time also has to be pretty quick, or you're just squashing it down and drowning it.