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Ah. Depends on the venue. The live version of "Autosuggestion" on Heart and Soul, recorded at a YMCA in Wales, is superb. The quiet/loud effect is great.
Or perhaps not best, merely different. In a book I'm reading, a sort of overview of that amorphous thing called post-punk, a witness to two of their concerts mentioned that while they sounded almost mediocre in small venues, when they played large, echoey venues, they were just haunting. Which, considering their studio work, makes sense. It also depends on the number: "Wilderness" is unreasonably rushed live, while slow to mid-tempo songs like "Insight" and "The Eternal" seem unchanged or improved.
One might also note that their producer, Martin Hannett, was a devoted aesthete but also a complete nut. He had their drummer play each section individually which, although great for creating that inhuman, muted-aggressive pulse that drives both records, is just torture for the musician. He also kept the studio at ultra-low temperatures for optimum stress and discomfort levels.
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