diff --git a/Cargo.toml b/Cargo.toml
index 2a20bfd..2d54280 100644
--- a/Cargo.toml
+++ b/Cargo.toml
@@ -97,3 +97,7 @@ required-features = ["cli"]
 name = "generation-daemon"
 path = "src/bin/generation-daemon.rs"
 required-features = ["audio-ogg"]
+
+[[bin]]
+name = "ace-step-client"
+path = "src/bin/ace-step-client.rs"
diff --git a/src/bin/ace-step-client.rs b/src/bin/ace-step-client.rs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..03fa3d8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/bin/ace-step-client.rs
@@ -0,0 +1,206 @@
+//! Simple command-line client for the ACE-Step generation daemon.
+//!
+//! Connects to the Unix socket, sends a JSON generation request, waits for the
+//! response, and exits 0 on success or 1 on error.
+//!
+//! # Usage
+//!
+//! ```sh
+//! ace-step-client \
+//!   --caption "upbeat jazz, 120 BPM" \
+//!   --output /tmp/music.mp3 \
+//!   --duration 30
+//!
+//! # With lyrics:
+//! ace-step-client \
+//!   --caption "silly novelty pop, bouncy" \
+//!   --lyrics "[verse]\nCat cat cat cat\n[chorus]\nMeow meow meow" \
+//!   --output /tmp/cat.mp3 \
+//!   --duration 30
+//!
+//! # Unload pipeline to free VRAM:
+//! ace-step-client --unload
+//! ```
+
+use std::{path::PathBuf, time::Duration};
+
+use anyhow::{Context, bail};
+use clap::Parser;
+use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
+use tokio::{
+    io::{AsyncBufReadExt, AsyncWriteExt, BufReader},
+    net::UnixStream,
+    time::timeout,
+};
+
+#[derive(Parser)]
+#[command(name = "ace-step-client", about = "Send a generation request to the ACE-Step daemon")]
+struct Args {
+    /// Style description: genre, mood, tempo, instruments
+    #[arg(long)]
+    caption: Option<String>,
+
+    /// Output file path (.mp3, .ogg, or .wav)
+    #[arg(long)]
+    output: Option<PathBuf>,
+
+    /// Duration in seconds (default: 30)
+    #[arg(long, default_value = "30.0")]
+    duration: f64,
+
+    /// Lyrics with [verse]/[chorus]/[bridge] tags; omit for instrumental
+    #[arg(long)]
+    lyrics: Option<String>,
+
+    /// Metadata string, e.g. "bpm: 120, key: C major"
+    #[arg(long)]
+    metas: Option<String>,
+
+    /// Lyrics language code (default: en)
+    #[arg(long, default_value = "en")]
+    language: String,
+
+    /// ODE schedule shift 1–3 (default: 3.0)
+    #[arg(long, default_value = "3.0")]
+    shift: f64,
+
+    /// Fixed seed for reproducibility (omit for random)
+    #[arg(long)]
+    seed: Option<u64>,
+
+    /// Socket path (default: /tmp/ace-step-gen.sock)
+    #[arg(long, default_value = "/tmp/ace-step-gen.sock")]
+    socket: PathBuf,
+
+    /// Timeout in seconds to wait for generation (default: 300)
+    #[arg(long, default_value = "300")]
+    timeout_secs: u64,
+
+    /// Unload the pipeline from VRAM instead of generating
+    #[arg(long)]
+    unload: bool,
+}
+
+#[derive(Serialize)]
+#[serde(untagged)]
+enum Request {
+    Generate(GenerateRequest),
+    Command(CommandRequest),
+}
+
+#[derive(Serialize)]
+struct GenerateRequest {
+    caption: String,
+    #[serde(skip_serializing_if = "Option::is_none")]
+    output: Option<String>,
+    duration_s: f64,
+    #[serde(skip_serializing_if = "Option::is_none")]
+    lyrics: Option<String>,
+    #[serde(skip_serializing_if = "Option::is_none")]
+    metas: Option<String>,
+    language: String,
+    shift: f64,
+    #[serde(skip_serializing_if = "Option::is_none")]
+    seed: Option<u64>,
+}
+
+#[derive(Serialize)]
+struct CommandRequest {
+    command: String,
+}
+
+#[derive(Deserialize)]
+#[serde(untagged)]
+enum Response {
+    Success(SuccessResponse),
+    Error(ErrorResponse),
+}
+
+#[derive(Deserialize)]
+struct SuccessResponse {
+    ok: bool,
+    path: Option<String>,
+    duration_s: Option<f64>,
+}
+
+#[derive(Deserialize)]
+struct ErrorResponse {
+    #[allow(dead_code)]
+    ok: bool,
+    error: String,
+}
+
+#[tokio::main]
+async fn main() -> anyhow::Result<()> {
+    let args = Args::parse();
+
+    let request = if args.unload {
+        Request::Command(CommandRequest { command: "unload".into() })
+    } else {
+        let caption = args.caption.context("--caption is required for generation")?;
+        Request::Generate(GenerateRequest {
+            caption,
+            output: args.output.map(|p| p.to_string_lossy().into_owned()),
+            duration_s: args.duration,
+            lyrics: args.lyrics,
+            metas: args.metas,
+            language: args.language,
+            shift: args.shift,
+            seed: args.seed,
+        })
+    };
+
+    let request_line = serde_json::to_string(&request)? + "\n";
+
+    let stream = timeout(Duration::from_secs(10), UnixStream::connect(&args.socket))
+        .await
+        .context("timed out connecting to daemon socket")?
+        .with_context(|| format!("failed to connect to {}", args.socket.display()))?;
+
+    let (reader, mut writer) = stream.into_split();
+
+    writer
+        .write_all(request_line.as_bytes())
+        .await
+        .context("failed to send request")?;
+    writer.flush().await?;
+    // Signal EOF so the daemon knows we're done writing.
+    drop(writer);
+
+    let mut reader = BufReader::new(reader);
+    let mut response_line = String::new();
+
+    timeout(Duration::from_secs(args.timeout_secs), reader.read_line(&mut response_line))
+        .await
+        .context("timed out waiting for daemon response")?
+        .context("failed to read response")?;
+
+    if response_line.is_empty() {
+        bail!("daemon closed connection without sending a response");
+    }
+
+    let response: Response =
+        serde_json::from_str(response_line.trim()).context("failed to parse daemon response")?;
+
+    match response {
+        Response::Success(r) if r.ok => {
+            if let Some(path) = r.path {
+                if let Some(duration) = r.duration_s {
+                    eprintln!("generated {:.1}s of audio → {path}", duration);
+                } else {
+                    eprintln!("done → {path}");
+                }
+                println!("{path}");
+            } else {
+                eprintln!("ok");
+            }
+            Ok(())
+        }
+        Response::Success(r) => {
+            bail!("daemon returned ok=false without error field (raw: {:?})", r.path);
+        }
+        Response::Error(r) => {
+            bail!("generation failed: {}", r.error);
+        }
+    }
+}