Pruning for Control

Windy, windy, windy today with gray skies. Not cold, but windy with big gusts.

Butterfly bush shrubs don't need to be pruned hard each year, unless to control the size and encourage flowering below just the top. I have cut back this butterfly bush in the corner in past years, but I might let it go this year. 

The form is vase shaped and upright, the blooming is not only at the top, and the size is still good. I should cut off the dried flowers, but leave the stems and branches uncut.

But good god, what about the pyracantha in the corner at the side of the house? Those tall vertical stems are where I cut this shrub last year to control it.

Now half the shrub is mounded gracefully and half of it is a freakish explosion of tall stems. 

It's in a spot where I don't see it much. From the other side of the fence, looking down the side alley past the ironwood tree, I see only the tall upright stems above the fence. Not attractive, but not in the way.

Will those tall branches settle in and drape over eventually? Should I just let this go? Pruning it to control the size hasn't worked at all so far.