Whitesnake's early sound has been characterized by critics as blues rock, but they slowly began moving toward a more commercially accessible hard rock style. Themes such as love and sex are common in Whitesnake's lyrics, which have also been criticized for their excessive use of sexual innuendos and double entendres. Whitesnake have been nominated for several awards during their career, including Best British Group at the 1988 Brit Awards. They have also been featured on lists of the greatest hard rock bands of all time by several media outlets, while their songs and albums have appeared on many "best of" lists by outlets, such as VH1 and "Rolling Stone".