They were notable not only for playing incredibly fast and heavy music, but also for their politically and socially conscious song lyrics that criticized government policies, religious hypocrisy, racism, sexism, and poverty.
The Fartz original lineup in 1981 included vocalist Blaine Cook, guitarist Tommy Hansen, bassist Steve Hofmann, and drummer Loud Fart.
Despite their regional reputation, the Fartz had a difficult time getting booked to play clubs in their own hometown of Seattle, although their practice space was in the backstage area of the Showbox Theater on First Avenue, where many of the early all ages punk shows took place while the venue was managed by Modern Productions.
The original idea was that the Fartz would simply change their name to 10 Minute Warning, but after one west coast tour with the Dead Kennedys in the Fall of 1982, Blaine was replaced on vocals by Steve Swad (formerly of The Wad Squad).
After a one-off July 4, 1983 reunion show featuring the lineup of Blaine, Steve, Paul, and Duff, the former members of the Fartz went their separate ways for the next 15 years.
The Fartz original guitarist Tommy Hansen later played with the band Crisis Party, which released one LP, Rude Awakening, on Capitol Records in 1989.
Interest in the Fartz began to revive in 1990 with the release in Germany of a vinyl only LP entitled You, We See You Crawling, which was composed of previously unreleased demo tapes recorded in 1981-1982.
The release of the 1998 Fartz anthology by Alternative Tentacles prompted Blaine to reunite the lineup that had recorded the majority of the World Full of Hate LP: Steve, Paul, and Loud.
It was the lineup of Blaine, Steve, Alex and Karl that recorded the Fartz new studio LP, What's In A Name?, which was produced by Jack Endino and released by Alternative Tentacles in the summer of 2001.
The back cover of the 2001 LP paid homage to the band's previous members by stating, "Special thanx to Ex-Fartz: Paul Solger, Loud, Tommy Hansen."
The 28 tracks include songs such as "Is This The Way," and "Buried Alive," that have also been associated with the band 10 Minute Warning, as they were first recorded in late 1982 when the Fartz were in the process of changing their name and their lineup.