The idea of Christmas songs being full of joy and optimism never crossed the minds of Z Berg and Ryan Ross when they wrote “The Bad List,” a song focused on the end of a relationship, inspired by the two’s past, and a public outcry to bring that dead love back to life momentarily.

Ross, a former member of Panic! at the Disco, collaborated with Berg on this non-traditional holiday song to share an authentic, yet melancholy story of the former couple’s past relationship on Christmas Eve. “The song is about the beginning and the end of our relationship… both of us losing our minds,” said Berg in an interview with ALT Press. “I put Ryan in a car on Christmas Eve and shipped him off to an island to get his head together.”

The musical duo have also released a music video for their duet, which serves as a companion piece to Berg’s “I Fall For The Same Face Every Time,” a music video released earlier this year that shows Ross deceased in the trunk of a car. However, the roles have been reversed with this video with Ross sweeping a dead Berg off her feet and dancing around a room full of Christmas decorations. Berg, who directed alongside Drew Fuller, described the music video to represent the idea of carrying your emotional baggage around, your ghosts and any unresolved issues one has and taking them out for a spin, enjoying the cheerful memories you can make out of them.

Berg has been focused on working on and releasing new, original content for her fans all year long. In the year alone, she has released four solo-singles under the Metropolitan Indian label. Each single was accompanied by their own music video, in which she directed some of them, further branching out her artistry.

This duet also marked a new era for Ross, who has been absent from making music for a few years. Fans should expect to be listening to new, original music from the artist in the new year.

You can listen to the new song and watch the music video for it below.