AGE 44 WHY HIM? The consummate pop songwriter and former Crowded House frontman has joined the ranks of rockers scoring films. His atmospheric, pop-based music for Rain - a New Zealand coming-of-age drama that hit art houses this spring - lushly articulates the film's bittersweet nostalgia. WHY HE LIKES WRITING TO PICTURES "You don't start with the blank-page dilemma. You start! with a reason to be." MOURNING BECOMES ELECTRIC "I'm not sure how Rain ends up not being really bleak. There is an element of hope in there, and I'm not sure how (the director) pulls it off. That's the way I've always hoped my songs are, as well - there's melancholy, but I don't imagine at any moment there is a desolate feeling." BEST ADVICE "When I was 16, my Uncle George said I should have a girl in my band. It took me over 20 years to take him up on that." (Lisa Germano! and Prince alumnae Wendy and Lisa recently joined his combo.) NEXT Finn's experimenting with an orchestra for his next, still-secret score. In July, He tours America to promote a new studio album (One All).