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Apr 24, 2023 By Caleb Campbell Photography by Cade C Guillory

Lady Apple Tree is the new moniker of LA-based singer/songwriter Haylie Hostetter. She’s been operating behind the scenes for years now, largely playing on other people’s projects. She’s contributed to releases from Sam Burton, Sylvie, and Drugdealer, and also performed with Burton as support on the European leg of Weyes Blood’s latest tour. During that tour, Hostetter released her debut single, a cover of the Lovin’ Spoonful’s “Didn’t Want to Have to Do It.” Now she’s back with another new track, “Silver Hands,” premiering with Under the Radar.

“Silver Hands” finds Hostetter taking on a mystical, folkloric sheen, immersing her airy vocals in winding melodies, chiming 12-string guitar, and dreamy harmonies. Hostetter describes the track as “Mamas & Papas meets Renaissance.” She melds both eras seamlessly, and the results feel like both a lost product of the sixties folk boom and a wandering trek through an enchanted forest. Lyrically, the track is an adaptation of the Brothers Grimm tale, “The Girl Without Hands,” and tells a coming-of-age story narrating the sacrifices made on the girl’s path toward adulthood.

Hostetter explains of the track, “I wrote this song in 2020 at the start of the pandemic, when Will Worden and I escaped in his campervan to stay in the hills of Bishop, a small town in northern California known for its scenic mountains. Because of the chaos unfolding in LA, we thought we could get away for a while and rock climb. We ended up staying for two weeks before we had to return to real life. At the time, I was reading Women Who Run With the Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estés, and that is where I found the story of ‘The Girl Without Hands’. It inspired me to write ‘Silver Hands’ while on the road.”

Check out the song and video below, out everywhere now.