The pieces are atmospheric, extremely grungig and especially authentic which is also due to the ingenious production, when it did not arrive as Nevermind on good and round (and, unfortunately, boring) sound, but for authenticity. In Utero no "way-stop" is music and what makes it so good. While Nevermind still could run along quiet player in the CD and you could deal incidentally with ironing or clean up, you sit in front of in Utero and there is only the sound and nothing else.
So all in all: clear better than Nevermind, and, together with unplugged in New York at the best Nirvana albums